The Fallen Swan
by SallyJupiter
Summary: Winner: SilentTearAward BestForbiddenLove. Bella dedicates her life to unfurling the mystery behind the death of her best friend after her father is removed as sheriff. But an unwanted distraction sets her on an unexpected course. Homage to Veronica Mars
1. Strangers in Forks

**This is a Twilight take on Veronica Mars. The starting off point is very similar to Veronica Mars, but the mystery itself is different. In other words, just because you saw VM does not mean that you will know what is going to happen in this story. There will be quotes and direct references to both stories, and also original plot twists.**

**This is my first attempt at fan fiction, and I want to thank everyone that has helped me. A big "Thank You" goes out to everyone that read my drafts and helped out: Kim, Bec, Rei, Gabi, Sheeri, and Alice. I wouldn't be posting this without the help and encouragement from all of you. I also want to give a special shout out to all of my favorite bitches that keep me up laughing all hours of the night.**

**Chapter 1: Strangers in Forks**

Sooner or later, the people you love let you down.

If there is one thing I know with certainty that is it. I sat in my truck parked across the street from the unsightly Camelot Motel on the bad side of town. I wondered who or what Esme Cullen was doing that would bring her here. People only came to the Camelot for seedy affairs and secret trysts. So what was the wife of the most famous man in town doing here tonight?

I didn't have to wonder for long. Just a few moments after I watched her leave, a man walked out of the same room. The man that had been holed up in a motel room with Esme Cullen for at least an hour was someone I thought I knew well.

It was my dad, Charlie Swan.

I sat there, stunned, as I watched him leave. Why would Charlie be meeting Esme at the Camelot? Esme wore a satisfied smile as she left the motel, her dark hair bouncing at her shoulders. Given my family's history with the Cullens, there was no way this was just a cordial social call. Were Charlie and Esme having an affair?

Before I could ponder that possibility too carefully, my thoughts were interrupted by the rumbling roar of motorcycles. Jacob Black, the head of the closest thing our town had to a gang, pulled up next to my truck. He was followed by the rest of his crew, the La Push Pack as they called themselves. They were all from the Quileute reservation and rode around on their motorcycles trying their best to act badass.

Jacob motioned for me to roll down my window.

"Car trouble, miss?" he asked sarcastically.

Great. I turned the key and started the engine. Quil and Embry, two of Jake's buddies, closed in to block me from pulling away.

So how does a girl wind up surrounded by a motorcycle gang in the middle of the night on the wrong side of town? For that answer, we have to rewind to this morning.

I dreaded the morning arrival at school. I once read a book that likened high school to purgatory. I think whoever made that comparison was onto something.

The knowledge that a year and a half from now I could leave this sad little town behind, offered me little comfort. A year and a half in high school years might as well have been eternity. But knowing that I would someday leave this hellhole behind and never look back was the only solace I had. I arrived at school earlier than I intended, which meant I got a great parking spot, but it also meant that I had extra time.

At my school, your parents are either millionaires, or they work for millionaires. Forks, Washington is a town without a middle class. As I crossed the quad, I realized I still had some time before class. I sat down at my usual table, alone, and tried to finish my Geometry homework. But I couldn't concentrate.

I looked across the courtyard at the table where I used to sit. I never really belonged there. My family never had enough money to make me one of them. My dad didn't own a bank, like Mike Newton's, or serve as Ambassador to Belgium like Jessica Stanley's. And let's not forget Emmett McCarty, his dad runs an airline. Every school has an obligatory psychotic jackass – he's ours.

But my dad used to be the Sherriff and that had a certain cachet.

Let's be honest though. The only reason I was allowed past the velvet ropes was Jasper Hale, son of software billionaire Blake Hale. He used to be my boyfriend. Then one day, he ended things.

"Mind if I join you?" Seth Clearwater interrupted my thoughts to ask, even though he'd already sat down.

"Uh, actually…" I started to tell him to go away, but he seemed so earnest that I just didn't have the heart. Seth was a nice kid. Even though our families had a spotty history with each other, he was never anything but kind and helpful.

"I figured you could use some company," he said, as he began unpacking food from his bag and making himself comfortable. "Here, have some, I brought enough to share." He offered me one of his mini-muffins.

"Thanks, Seth. But really, you don't have to do that. Listen, you're a freshman, you're still new here. In case you haven't noticed, hanging with me isn't exactly going to win you any popularity points," I explained, but then as if to illustrate my point, we were interrupted.

"What the hell are you doing there, Seth?" Jacob Black sneered, as he crept up out of nowhere. At over six and a half feet tall, he towered over us.

"Just having some breakfast, Jake. Want some?" Seth offered, trying to act nonchalant.

"Leave him alone, Jacob" I said. "I was just leaving anyway."

Jacob didn't scare me like he did most people around here. I still remembered him as the scrawny, prepubescent boy that had a crush on me. It didn't matter to me that in the years since then he'd hit a growth spurt and bulked up to the size of the Hulk. Jacob ignored me and instead just scowled at Seth, waiting expectantly for him to get up.

"Mind your own business, Jake," Seth said, trying to sound tough.

"When people from my res go mixing with the very _thing_ that is wrong with this town," he said as he looked at me, "then it is very much my business. Careful Seth, you don't know where she's been. We wouldn't want you catching anything from her."

Jacob held so many grudges against me that I couldn't even be sure what his current reason was for despising me. It didn't matter. He wasn't the only one that had a problem with me.

"Well, listen Jake," I said, standing up, "it's been really great catching up. You're a regular one man welcoming committee, you know? See ya later." I punched him in the arm and started to walk towards my class. He cringed at my touch and glared at me.

Jacob used to be a lot like Seth, sweet and friendly. I looked back at him, wondering where that kid had gone, but all I saw was a teenaged wannabe thug in a wife-beater and black leather jacket.

When I was about ten paces away, he spoke again.

"Hey Swan, the way trouble seems to follow you around, I'd appreciate it if you'd steer clear of the people from my res," he shouted.

I didn't bother responding to him.

Another great start to another great day at Forks' High.

The gossip du jour was about the newest additions to our student body. Word had it that the son and daughter of Carlisle Cullen were transferring in after being expelled from their prestigious New York boarding school.

Carlisle Cullen, the golden boy of Forks, Washington, was a child actor from LA who moved to Forks as a teenager when his career hit a standstill. Our affluent little town has a reputation for being elite. It's long been the get-away spot of choice for the rich and famous.

For years, Carlisle had been a washed up has-been with an embarrassing amount of soap opera work on his resume. But three years ago, when he landed the role as the hot new doctor on some primetime soap drama, his career was resuscitated. Now he's 'America's favorite TV Doctor' – a title he enjoys so much that he actually asks people to call him "Dr. Cullen". I have a feeling that if you wiki'd "narcissistic douche", there'd actually be an entry about him.

Though I'd never met his children, I was more than familiar with Carlisle and his wife Esme. My best friend, Tanya Grayle used to spend holidays with the Cullens and she'd told me plenty about Carlisle's son, Edward.

A year ago, I got a call from Tanya and she was frantically excited.

"What is _with_ you?" I asked, laughing.

"I've got a secret, Bella – a good one," she said. "I'm coming over later to tell you all about it."

Those were the last words Tanya and I ever shared.

Later that night, Charlie was driving us back from dinner when he got a call from the dispatcher about a disturbance at the Cullen estate. The moment I saw the look on Esme's face, I knew it was more than a disturbance.

But everyone knows this story – the murder of Tanya Grayle. It made headlines around the country, splashed across magazine covers and television news. The town flooded with journalists. And the bumbling local sheriff that went after the wrong man? That bumbling sheriff was my dad, Charlie Swan.

He quickly became the most hated man in town. No one wanted to believe that Carlisle had anything to do with such a horrible crime. He was the obvious suspect. Tanya was beaten and left for dead at the Cullen mansion. Carlisle didn't call the police right away, and was uncooperative with the investigation. The only story he would give was that he arrived home to find her body there.

I can't blame Charlie for going after Carlisle for the murder, he was definitely hiding something. But when the Mayor personally told him to back off, he refused. He became that much more convinced that Carlisle was dirty. He became even more dogged in his pursuit of the truth. Even my mom, Renee, told him to leave it alone. She told him he was obsessed, and that he was tearing our family apart.

Six weeks after Tanya Grayle's death, someone from the sheriff's department leaked the crime scene video. Within 24 hours, it was all over the internet. Someone made a fortune while Charlie took the blame. His belief that Carlisle Cullen was a murderer became a moot point. An emergency recall election removed him from office.

Renee wanted to move out of Forks. The loss of status and the loss of income were too much for her. We moved alright, because we couldn't afford our house. But Charlie wasn't going to be run out of town. Neither was I. We got by on what money he could make working as a Private Investigator. After school, I did what I could to help out at his office.

So even though I'd never met the new Cullen kids, I already knew enough. Tanya told me plenty about Edward Cullen in particular. The two of them used to hook up over their summers together. It was never too serious, with Tanya living in Forks and Edward in New York for school. I could tell she cared about him, but it sounded like he didn't care about anyone. I hadn't heard much about his little sister, Alice, but it didn't really matter. My impression of Edward was that he was even more vile than his father.

Just what this town needed. Another fucking Cullen.

"Damn it, Bella! Watch where you're going!" Emmett McCarty grumbled as he slammed into me. "Ahh, great…just…great…" he said, as he motioned to the front of his shirt. It was splattered with the chocolate milk he spilled over himself when he bumped into me.

He was the one so busy leaning around to check out Lauren Mallory's ass that he ran into me, but that didn't matter. People in this town seemed to find a way to blame the Swan family for anything and everything that went wrong.

"Get over it Em. It's not my fault your mommy forgot to pack your bib this morning," I mumbled as I pushed my way past him.

"Hardy har har, Swan. Real funny," he said, stalling while he came up with a retort.

I started walking away from him.

"Hey, speaking of moms…" he called after me. "Where is yours these days?" he asked rhetorically.

Yep. He found his retort, alright.

Damn. I set myself up for that one. Everyone in town knew that my mom skipped out on us eight months ago. Within a month of Charlie losing his job, Renee split. All she left was a note saying she'd be back for me some day.

I ignored Emmett's comment, and kept walking.

The last thing Charlie needed was to get a call from the school saying that I'd been in a fight again.

I was nearly to my English class, and I could still hear Emmett behind me, grumbling over the mess on his shirt. The buffoon was a total klutz. He made _me_ look suave. But unlike me, he was accustomed to always having someone else take the fall for his mistakes.

I slid into my seat and started taking my books out of my bag. As Emmett walked into the classroom, my eyes looked over the chocolate mess down the front of his rugby polo, and I realized that he was not the one that would be most upset over this. Emmett was basically a brute. He was a fool with a bad temper, but too dimwitted to be much harm.

His rabid girlfriend on the other hand, was a different story.

I raised my eyes from my desk just in time to catch Rosalie Hale's reaction to her chocolate stained boyfriend. Her ice-cold eyes widened and her mouth dropped open.

"Baby! What the hell happened to you? You can't wear that!" She rushed over to him and shoved his jacket up over his chest as if to hide the stain from public view.

Like a scolded child, Emmett dropped his head and just pointed in my direction.

He didn't have to say anything. The blonde witch really needed no reason to attack me. She just waited for opportunities like this.

Rosalie was the single most bitchy, conniving person I'd ever met. She was descended from a long line of bitches. On both sides. She was born and raised in it. She was a thoroughbred bitch.

"I should have known that skank had something to do with it." She turned her attention to me. "God, Swan, why do you have to ruin everything for us?" she hissed.

"Ruin everything? Look, first of all, he ran into—"

"Ugh, so typical of the Swan family. Blame someone else," Rosalie interrupted, laughing like she had just made some brilliant joke.

"It's just a stain, Rose. Breathe. Get over it. Life will go on," I said, rolling my eyes. I was not in the mood to deal with her drama.

A look of cold anger washed over her face. She turned from Emmett and slowly walked towards my desk. She flipped her long, bleached out hair over her shoulder as she leaned into my face.

It was infuriating that even up this close, when I could see all of her pores and everything, she was still gorgeous. And she knew it.

"Come on Rosalie, you aren't really going to cry over spilled milk, now are you?" I knew I shouldn't taunt her, but I just couldn't resist. She was going to give me hell either way. I might as well have a little fun.

She smacked her hands down on my desk, shutting my notebook, as she spoke.

"Listen, maybe in your trailer park it is acceptable to run around looking like your clothes are covered in shit, but not all of us –"

"Ms. Hale, please take your seat," Mr. Berty interrupted Rosalie, mid-insult. I loved that about Berty. He always seemed to have good timing.

My Rosalie interaction was not complete until she shot me a signature scowl before slithering off to her seat.

It wasn't always like this. Everyone in this town didn't always hate me. Rosalie and Emmett weren't always my enemies. In fact, we used to be friends. But all that changed a long time ago.

As Mr. Berty lectured through class, my mind wandered back over times when things weren't so hostile. The Swan name wasn't always the butt of every joke within earshot.

"You alright?" The familiar voice snapped my attention back to the present. Lost in thought, I hadn't heard the bell ring. I'd totally lost track of time. The classroom emptied out and I looked up.

Jasper Hale smiled down at me. Rosalie's twin brother was unlike her in every way except that he was blonde and gorgeous.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine," I answered, embarrassed. I gathered my books and stood up. He seemed to be waiting, as though to walk with me.

I walked out of the room with him, wordlessly. Once in the hall, I saw that Rosalie was waiting for me, Emmett standing behind her.

I understood then why Jasper had waited for me. He was running interference for me with his sister. Tanya used to joke that Jasper and I balanced out each other. She said that his calming presence was the perfect counterpart to my neurotic, stubborn temper. She was actually right. He was so mellow; I think it was impossible for anyone not to feel calm around him.

Anyone except Rosalie, that is. She must have some type of twin-immunity to his good nature.

Her glare shifted from me onto Jasper as we entered the hall. I braced for insult.

She opened her mouth to speak, but Jasper cut her off and held up his hand.

"Rose, did you get the contact sheet back from the photographer yet?" he asked.

Genius. Rosalie's vanity was her weakness.

"Oh, yes! They are fantastic…here, let me just…" She started digging in her bag.

Jasper smiled at me and raised his hand as if to tip an imaginary hat. I smiled and mouthed the words "thank you".

Then I walked away, leaving him to deal with Rosalie.

Jasper was just like that. He was always doing some nice thing for me when I least expected it. Even after he broke up with me, he was always there…being his supportive, clever, and unbearably perfect self.

Although I appreciated his help, I couldn't get down the hall and away from him fast enough. He wasn't my boyfriend anymore, and it made me uncomfortable when he was too nice to me.

Even after Renee split, when it was just me and Charlie, when the rest of Forks treated us like the town lepers, Jasper stood by my side. He never judged me.

The week after Renee walked out on us, things seemed like they couldn't get any worse. Then Harry Clearwater, father of Seth and Leah Clearwater, and one of Charlie's old friends from La Push, walked into the police station and confessed to murdering Tanya. Charlie didn't believe him, but it didn't matter. The new sheriff pushed for a speedy trial and Harry was convicted.

None of it made any sense. So eager to put the story to bed, no one asked the obvious questions.

What was Tanya doing at the Cullen house?

Why would Harry Clearwater want to kill Tanya?

Why did Harry confess?

People wanted someone to blame. They wanted someone to hold responsible for tearing the town apart and bringing in so much scandal. It wasn't enough to have Harry Clearwater on death row, Charlie became a target too and we were quickly ostracized.

In a town divided, we didn't fit on either side.

I sided with Charlie. When everyone at school started making jokes, I could have laughed along with them. I could have gone along, and maybe then this would be a very different story.

And the thing is, I didn't even know if Charlie was right about the case.

In the end, it didn't matter to me.

Tanya was dead, and Renee was gone. I wasn't going to lose Charlie, too. So I stood up for him.

Then I became a target too.

That afternoon at lunch, Seth Clearwater found me again.

"Hey Bella, I really think we should talk," he said as he sat down with me, again.

"What's up Seth? You talking to me is going to bring a lot of shit down on you. Are you sure it's worth it?" I asked.

"Yeah, I think we can help each other. If we work together, we can clear both of our dads' names," he said.

I couldn't help but laugh.

"Okay, Sherlock, and how exactly do you propose we go about that?" I questioned.

"I know you've picked up a lot from helping your dad with investigations, and I'll help however I can. I know my dad didn't do it, and I'm pretty sure you know that, too," he said.

"Seth, I'm really sorry about your dad. I really am. But my family has been through enough because of the Cullens. I'm not going to add to that," I explained.

"Esme knows something," he blurted out.

"How do you know that?" I asked.

"I just do, okay? I've tried following her, but I can't get away with being off the res late at night. I want you to follow her…see what she's up to," he explained.

"What are you doing following around Esme Cullen, Seth?! Do you know how much shit you could get in if you got caught?" I demanded.

"I don't care. Please Bella. I know you want to figure this out just as bad as I do. Maybe even more," he said.

He was right. Even though I knew it was a bad idea, I couldn't resist an opportunity to find the truth.

"Tell me what you know about Esme," I pressed.

"You know how Emily works weekends over at the Camelot?" he asked. "Well, she says Esme's been showing up every week or so."

He had my attention. No one went to the Camelot for anything except shady dealings, and certainly not people like Esme Cullen.

"Will you see what you can find out? I've tried going there, but she stays real late. Can you get away with staying out late enough to follow her?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'll just tell Charlie I'm spending the night at Angela's." Angela Weber was the closest thing I had to a friend anymore, but we really weren't close. I exaggerated our friendship to Charlie so that he wouldn't worry about me being antisocial.

Charlie had given me specific instructions to stay away from Carlisle Cullen and the investigation, but technically, he never said anything about Esme.

"Thanks, Bella." Seth looked at me for a moment, and we had a silent understanding.

"I'll call you later and let you know what I find out," I said.

The rest of the day, I was preoccupied, thinking about the case. It was probably nothing, but I had to check it out. Maybe Esme held the key to finding out what happened to Tanya. It was definitely worth looking into.

Later that afternoon, on my way to Biology, I heard more of the Cullen gossip I'd been trying to tune out.

Apparently 'asshole' ran in the Cullen family.

The story was that Edward had seduced the Head Mistress's daughter and recorded his conquest. He then posted it on YouTube and sent the link to the entire school.

What a prince.

From what I heard, this wasn't his first time in this sort of trouble. Only this time Daddy's money couldn't buy him out of it. The Head Mistress was so furious that she immediately expelled Edward and his sister, Alice, saying that the Cullens were no longer welcome there.

If only we could get her to come here to Forks…

The administration at Forks' High was delighted to have Carlisle's little darlings.

That story, combined with his family name, already cemented him as Forks' royalty.

Biology was my last class of the day, and it wasn't half bad either. Mr. Banner was an alright teacher, but most importantly, he gave me my space.

When the rest of the class partnered up, he left me alone, just like I wanted. Some teachers would tell me to join an existing group, and I'd have to watch as they all squirmed in their seats and avoided eye contacted, praying I wouldn't pick them.

Not Banner though, he respected my solitude.

When I got to the Biology lab, I made my way to my seat in the back. I sat in the back of every class that I could so that people couldn't throw things at me. I slid my books over to the empty spot on the far side of my lab table.

I looked up as the bell rang and Mr. Banner stood to begin class.

He had just started his lecture when the door opened.

And there he was.

Edward Cullen.

I knew it was Edward Cullen immediately, because he was exactly as Tanya described him, only more so.

He had the same movie star good looks as Carlisle, only instead of Carlisle's blonde hair, his was brown, no – bronze. He didn't have Carlisle's signature "fake and bake" tanned complexion, instead he was pale, but it suited him.

He flashed this cocky, crooked grin as he entered.

"Ah, Mr. Cullen, I presume?" Mr. Banner asked.

What? Oh no. Banner was expecting him. That means he is in this class, and the only empty seat is –

"Please take your seat in the back." He pointed at the empty spot next to me. "Bella, I trust you'll share your notes with Mr. Cullen?"

I don't know if I answered Banner or not.

I stared at the new Cullen. He was gorgeous, and he obviously knew it. He seemed as smug and arrogant as his father. The Cullens represented the worst of this town, and now I was stuck with one as a lab partner.

He headed towards his new seat, next to me. As he walked past the fan in the front of the classroom, I swear I could smell him. Intoxicatingly sweet, delicious. That was a horrible reaction for me to have to a Cullen.

This was unbelievable. Carlisle freaking Cullen's asshole son is my lab partner.

Perfect.

**Please leave a review and tell me what you think!**


	2. The Stranger Beside Me

**A/N: Just a quick point of clarification: Veronica Mars is just the jumping off point for this story. Characters and storylines are not meant to match up exactly. Many of the characters are composites and represent different aspects of the various characters from VM. Veronica Mars and Twilight are the inspiration, but I want to keep the story fresh.**

**Thanks!**

**Also, I do not own Twilight and I do not own Veronica Mars, obviously.**

**Chapter 2: The Stranger Beside Me**

**Edward POV**

I have been transported to a soggy, overcast, and cold hell.

I knew I'd out done myself this time for sure. I'd pissed off Carlisle more times than I cared to remember, and I'd gotten expelled from plenty of schools before. But I never imagined that Mr. Hands-off himself would suddenly decide it was time to keep me close to "home".

Shit.

This place wasn't home to me. It wasn't even home to Carlisle. He just bought up real estate in this hellhole because he thought it bought him class. He detested being considered "new-money", so he'd spent a fortune trying to buy himself into the "old-money" elite world here in this dank town.

I'll admit that this most recent "incident" of mine was a little worse than my previous activities. But it wasn't really my fault. Not that I'd ever admit that, I mean I had a reputation to maintain. I'd never admit that damn girl taped us without me knowing. That sex tape shit was like reputation gold.

In fact, I was surprised I _hadn't_ thought of it myself.

When I found out I'd gotten us expelled, I expected Alice to be furious with me. She's a tiny little thing, but damn, do I hate to piss her off. She can hold a grudge like nobody's business. And she's a schemer too. She's not as upfront with her contempt as I am; she prefers to work behind the scenes.

So when I found out that I'd gotten her involved -- that was what worried me.

Then she bounced in like a fucking pixie, talking so fast I could barely understand her, rambling on about how great this was going to be.

Then we got here. This place was depressing. Everything was green and grey. It was fucking bland. Not to mention that as soon as I started meeting the locals, I realized I was in for the bore of my life.

This town was like a fishbowl. Everybody was all up in everybody's business. I was no stranger to rich kid bullshit and gossip, but this was awful. I'd been at exclusive boarding schools up and down the east and west coasts, and two in Europe.

This place was a joke, and no one here realized it.

To make matters worse, Carlisle was content on putting up this "happy family" image. Ever since that shit with Tanya went down last year, he's been obsessed with his image.

Typical Carlisle. A girl gets murdered, and he's concerned with how it affects him.

There was some bullshit about him having something to do with it, but all that blew over pretty quick. I guess some cop in town got a real hard-on for going after Carlisle, but then some guy confessed and that was that.

To be honest, I didn't really follow it.

I know that makes me sound like an ass, seeing as I knew Tanya and all, but I just couldn't get wrapped up in that mess. See, I always knew Tanya was destined for a tragic end. She was one of those girls that thrived on drama.

She lived and breathed on that shit.

I saw her every summer since we were kids. We started fucking around one year just because, well…there was nothing else to do. She was wild, but kinda nuts too.

She never wanted to date me. Not that it was particularly my style to have a serious relationship or anything. But she always made it clear that we were just vacation sex to each other. I never really understood that, but whatever. I actually liked her, more than I usually liked girls. But we were never really close.

She was always looking for scandal. My theory was that she finally found some seriously scandalous shit and that was the end of her. Besides, for all his bullshit, I knew Carlisle wasn't a killer. He just didn't have it in him.

Small town cops are always looking to make a name for themselves. So, I'm sure when there was a big story like that in a small town like this, Starsky here couldn't wait to pin it on the local celebrity.

Whatever.

I didn't concern myself with Carlisle's problems.

I wished he'd afford me the same courtesy.

So, just as I was convinced that this place was going to be the most boring hellhole ever, I started to hear some interesting rumors.

Apparently Joe-cop has a daughter at my school.

Now that is just fucking priceless.

My first thoughts were how to fuck with her, but then the story got more interesting. There was crazy shit about her dad going nuts and her mom splitting town or something. But the best part was that apparently this girl was a fighter. When the town gossips turned on her, she started kicking asses left and right.

Now that was just plain awesome.

I liked her style.

When the "Mean Girls" started talking smack, instead of getting all girly bitchy and starting rumors or crying, this girl started knock down drag outs.

God, I would pay money to see these rich bitches getting their asses handed to them.

I listened more closely to get the girl's name.

Bella.

Bella Swan.

I'd have to make sure I had some classes with this girl.

My first day at Forks High was as boring as could be expected. The only halfway interesting thing that happened was an _almost_ fight. Some tools that thought they had a motorcycle gang tried starting shit with some kid over… who cares what. But it was all talk and nothing happened. Totally anti-climactic.

So by the time the afternoon rolled around, I was already beginning to plan my escape strategy. I'd have to start some shit so bad that Carlisle would immediately want me gone from his prestigious little town.

Again my thoughts rolled back around to the Swan girl. What better way to piss off Carlisle than to start shit with the daughter of his nemesis? But then again, she sounded alright, and if I did end up stuck in this shit hole, she might just be my ally. I'd hold off on passing judgment for now.

Before my last class, I stepped outside for a quick smoke. I wasn't in any hurry to get there. It's not like anything significant ever happened in high school Biology class.

So after I took my time and finished my cig, I wandered around a little bit before I finally made my way to the science wing.

The bell rang just as I reached the hallway. I stopped to get a drink of water, really in no rush to sit through another boring lecture. I opened the door and stepped inside, making my entrance in my usual late style.

The teach had started class already, so I just threw him a smile as I entered.

"Ah, Mr. Cullen, I presume?" the teacher asked.

Damn straight. I loved having a reputation that preceded me.

"Please take your seat in the back." He pointed at an empty seat next to some girl. "Bella, I trust you'll share your notes with Mr. Cullen?"

Bella? As in Bella Swan? Oh, this was too good to be true.

She was pretty hot too – dark hair that fell just past her shoulders. She dressed a little like a tomboy, but from what I could tell with the lab table in the way, she seemed to have a good body. Maybe a little too thin, but it worked okay on her.

I started down the aisle, throwing her one of my signature smirks.

She had a strange look on her face, like something was wrong. Weird.

She kept staring at me. I suddenly wondered if I had food on my face.

When I reached her table, she slowly moved her books out of the way to make room for mine. A look of revulsion covered her face, and I wondered what her problem was. Maybe she really liked having the table to herself or some shit. Or maybe crazy ran in her family. That was actually kinda hot. Whatever. I'd throw a few more crooked grins her way, and turn on the Cullen charm, and she'd be warmed up to me in no time.

The Swan girl was my lab partner. Carlisle would hate that. This was unbelievable. Barney freaking Fife's daughter is my lab partner.

Perfect.

I sat down and pulled out a notebook. The teacher, Banner, rambled on with his lesson. I wasn't really paying attention. I was more focused on the strange behavior of Bella Swan. She looked like she just smelled something bad. Maybe I still smelled of cigarette smoke from earlier. Still, that wasn't exactly the most repulsive scent around. What was her deal?

When it came time to do the lab, she slid the microscope my way without so much as a word. The most I got out of her was a nod here and there. I swear she looked like she was about to bolt out of her seat and make a run for the door.

No wonder everyone here talked about this chick.

She was bizarre, even for Forks.

Whatever. She was probably just PMS'ing.

My plan was to talk to her after class, walk her to her car, and do that whole shtick. But, as soon as the bell rang she was out of her seat and out the door so fast that I barely saw her move. She was just…gone. She was a strange one, and I gotta admit, I was intrigued.

Maybe Forks wasn't going to be so boring after all.

**Bella POV**

I couldn't get out of Bio fast enough. As if having Edward Cullen as a lab partner wasn't bad enough, he kept smiling at me all hour. I pretended not to notice. I'm sure he was used to dropping panties with that smile, but I wasn't even going to acknowledge it.

I didn't wait around for any niceties after class; I just took off.

There was no point in me wasting my time thinking about him, I had more important things to focus on. When I got back home to the apartment, Charlie was already there. He seemed anxious about something as he greeted me at the door.

"Hey Bells. Listen, I just got a tip about bail jumper hiding out down in Sacramento." he explained. "You gonna be alright alone if I go away overnight?" he asked.

Perfect timing. I needed some alone time tonight to follow up on Esme Cullen.

"Yeah, sure. You know me, I'll be fine," I answered.

"You sure? Cause I could –"

"Yes, I'm positive. Besides we can really use the money, right?" I reassured him.

"Okay, well, you know the drill. Just be careful. I'm gonna get a jump on the drive, and I'll give you a call tomorrow." He patted me on the shoulder and walked to the parking lot and on to his car.

He stopped just after he opened his car door.

"Hey Bells, I love you," he said in a somber voice.

"I love you too, dad," I answered. Sentimentality was not usually his style. Something must be bothering him. He was probably worried about money.

I watched him pull out of the lot.

Well, that clears up my evening.

I made myself a quick dinner and worked on some homework. I waited about an hour before I headed out. I wanted to give Charlie plenty of time to get on the road and away from town, plus it would be close to dark, so I would be less visible. I was relieved he hadn't asked me what my plans for the evening were. I was never any good at lying, especially to Charlie.

I packed a thermos of coffee, my camera with telephoto lens and my can of pepper spray, and then drove over to the Cullen house.

Carlisle and Esme Cullen drove matching Mercedes. Carlisle's was black and Esme's was red. When I pulled up outside of the Cullen house, only the red one was parked in the driveway. Carlisle must be out for the evening. And what pray tell, are Mrs. Cullen's plans for the evening?

I parked across the street and down a few houses, and waited.

I tried not to think about Edward Cullen as I waited. No good would come of it.

Charlie was always saying, "This is the job". Waiting and waiting. And this could all be for nothing. Gossip down on the Quileute reservation about the Cullen family was nothing new. It could be just that – nothing more than idle gossip.

But I had to know for sure.

Then, just as I was beginning to doubt myself and the validity of Seth's information, Esme emerged from the house. She looked beautiful, as she always did. She moved quickly as she skipped down the steps and slid into her Mercedes. She was the type of woman that always moved with a certain grace. She had the type of elegance that had eluded me my whole life.

After Esme backed out of the drive, I waited a few seconds before pulling out behind her. As I followed her across town, I found myself wondering what it must have been like for Edward and his sister to grow up at boarding schools and only seeing their parents on seasonal trips to Tahoe or Barbados. I couldn't imagine growing up as the child of Carlisle or Esme Cullen. Carlisle was disgustingly self-involved, and Esme wasn't much better. In fact, she was a total bitch. I never understood why, but she seemed to hate me almost as much as she loved her money and status. She never thought too highly of Renee either.

_Focus on the job, Bella._ I reminded myself. I had a clear objective at hand, and I didn't need to get distracted thinking about the family dynamics of the rich and famous.

I stayed behind Esme, close enough so that I wouldn't lose her, but far enough back so as not to catch her attention. It certainly seemed like Seth's information was solid. She led us all the way across town. A few blocks later, she pulled into the parking lot at the Camelot motel.

Unbelievable.

Was Esme Cullen having a secret tryst?

Even if she was, she could certainly afford to have it a nicer place than the nasty Camelot.

If she was driving all the way out here, it had to be to meet someone that she couldn't possibly explain her way out of being seen with. But who?

There was a strong chance that this had absolutely nothing to do with Tanya's death or the investigation. But the opportunity to get dirt on the Cullen family was just too good to pass up.

I watched her park her car and go directly to room 212. She knocked once and someone opened the door from the inside. Prince Charming must have been waiting for her. Whoever it was stayed behind the door and I didn't get a look at him. I waited for over an hour before she finally emerged from the room, looking mildly flustered yet content.

Now it was time to wait for the mystery man to make his appearance.

A few minutes later, I watched as my own father emerged from the same room Esme had. Charlie was Esme's mystery man.

Astonished, I watch him get in his car and drive away.

Was Charlie having an affair with Esme Cullen?

Was that the real reason Renee left?

Was that why Charlie went after Carlisle so intently?

The night had given me more questions than answers. Charlie wasn't in California tracking down some bail jumper; he was in Forks meeting with the wife of his archenemy.

People lie. Charlie lied.

That's when Jacob Black and his band of goons showed up. Talk about bad timing.

"Car trouble, miss?" Jacob asked mockingly.

I tried to pull away, but Quil and Embry had closed ranks to block me in.

"What, are you stalking me now?" I asked.

"Whatever. You're on _my_ land now," he said defiantly. "Once you crossed those railroad tracks, you came into _my_ territory."

"What do you want, Jacob?" I asked, annoyed.

"I want to know what business you have with Seth Clearwater. I seem to remember telling you to stay away from my people," Jacob said.

"_Your_ people, Jake? You've got to be kidding me," I replied. I was not in the mood to have this conversation.

"Do I look like I'm kidding?" Jacob asked, doing his best imitation of menacing.

"Well, I have always found you funny, Jake," I answered.

He leaned in closer to me, lowering his voice.

"Listen. Seth is a good kid. I don't want you getting him in any trouble, alright?" he said, almost in a whisper.

"He came up to m—" I started.

"But I'm telling, no, _asking_ you. Leave him alone. He's been through enough. He's pretty thick headed and gets some big ideas, but he's just a kid. I'm asking you to do the right thing here. Keep him outta trouble, alright?"

And there for a moment, a very brief moment, I saw the Jacob Black that I remembered. His concern was evident. It was written across his face and wrapped around his voice.

So I nodded in agreement.

Then he reached down and gave me a pat on my arm, and it startled me. I don't think he'd physically touched me in years. He laughed at my surprise and shook his head. I felt myself blush, and I hoped it was dark enough that he didn't see it.

"Take care of yourself, Bells," he mumbled.

With a wave of his hand, the rest of the La Push boys started up their bikes and drove off behind Jacob.

I sat for a moment before restarting the engine and driving away.

I didn't drive back to the apartment, I wasn't ready to go home. Instead, I drove to Charlie's office. I'd been ignoring my phone all night, so when I finally remembered to check it, it didn't surprise me to see I had two missed calls.

I dialed my voicemail and played the first message.

"Hey Bells, it's dad. Just calling to check in on you. I'm on the road. Just got a couple more hours till I reach Sacramento. You were just, uh, on my mind so I thought I'd call. I wanted to make sure you were okay. Guess you went to sleep early. Talk to you tomorrow. Love ya."

Uncharacteristically sentimental.

Is that a symptom of guilt, Charlie Swan?

Message saved.

Next message.

"Bella, hey, listen, it's Seth. I know it's late, I was just hoping you had some news to report back. Did you find out anything? Call me as soon as you get this. I don't care how late it is. Just let me know if you found something, okay? Anything at all, let me know. Thanks, Bella." His voice was full of excitement, optimism. Hope that maybe we were one step closer to helping his dad and mine.

Message deleted.

What would I say to him?

This morning when I woke up, I had one person in the world that I could count on. But if there's something I've learned with certainty, it's this – the people you love let you down.

As I climbed the steps to the office of Swan Investigations, I tried to decide what my next move would be. I let myself in and went over behind Charlie's desk. I'd known where he kept the combination to the safe for a long time, but I'd never needed to use it until now.

I opened the safe and pulled out the stack of folders it contained.

What has Charlie been up to?

I couldn't believe what I found. The Tanya Grayle murder file? I flipped through his pages. Some of the notes are only a few weeks old. The confessed killer is on death row, and Charlie still isn't giving up on the case. There was a post-it note stuck to the inside of the folder.

"_**E. Cam. room 212**_"

Room 212? Esme. Camelot. Room 212. Why did Charlie stick this note in the investigation file? What was Charlie doing there, and what business did he have with Esme Cullen?

And, the million-dollar question, why did Charlie lie to me?

I looked down at his desk and at the picture of the two of us. It was from my last birthday. It was the first one with just the two of us. Even though we were broke, he surprised me with a cake. He'd tried to bake it himself to save money, and it was a disaster. The picture was one of those silly self-taken types that cut off part of everyone's heads. We were laughing. We were happy.

Okay, so he lied to me. But I've got to believe he had his reasons. He's probably trying to protect me. That's what dad's do.

Still, I've got too many questions swirling around in my head to wait until he's willing to share.

These questions need answers.

I used to think I knew what tore our family apart. Now I'm sure I don't.

But I promise this – I _will_ find out what really happened and I will bring this family back together again.


	3. The Cullen Backlash

**Thanks to everyone that read and reviewed! I really appreciate the feedback.  
I was really conflicted about a couple of things in this chapter, so I want to thank everyone that helped me sort through the decisions.  
Thanks to Kim for beta-ing and giving me some really great suggestions. Thanks to Alice, Crayons, Gabi, Rei, Sheeeri and all the EBs for your help and support.  
I am very excited that Sheeeri has been working on some really cool manips to go along with this fic. When I figure out how, I will be posting them here. Thanks again, Sheeeri!!**

**I hope to post Chapter 4 and Chapter 5 in about a week. This is a long chapter, I hope you enjoy it!**

**Chapter 3: The Cullen Backlash**

I made a choice a long time ago. I chose to stand by Charlie, right or wrong.

Now I live with that choice, even though he's lied to me.

I'd been sitting in my truck for almost fifteen minutes.

I was stalling, dreading the inevitable. After Seth Clearwater's third call, I stopped playing the messages. I knew what he wanted to know. I didn't like the idea of lying to Seth, but I couldn't tell him the truth. Not yet.

I would find out what was going on with Esme Cullen and Charlie. I had to. And once I got to the bottom of things, I could fill in Seth. But for now, it's better for everyone if I keep this information to myself. I think.

I waited as late as possible before leaving the safety of my truck and making a run for class. I hoped that Seth would have given up on waiting around for me by then. I had almost made it across the nearly empty quad when –

"Hello, Bella," said a smooth, velvety voice.

That was not Seth Clearwater.

Between thinking about Charlie and Esme, and avoiding Seth, I had temporarily forgotten about the new Cullens.

I turned around to see Edward Cullen leaning, one knee kicked back with his foot against the brick wall of the school. He had a cigarette in one hand and his jacket rolled up in the other. He was wearing dark jeans, a light grey t-shirt. Jesus. I think he was trying to look like James Dean.

"Hey," I replied. I had nothing to say to him.

But, why was he talking to me? I was so not in the mood to put up with some Cullen bullshit.

He took a drag off his cigarette as he looked me up and down. I started to turn to continue on to my locker.

"So I figure if we're gonna be lab partners, we ought to get together sometime. You can bring me up to speed on what I've missed," he suggested.

You have got to be kidding me. I'd sooner gouge my eyes out with a spoon than spend time with the spawn of Carlisle freaking Cullen.

"I'll photocopy my notes for you," I answered, coldly.

I knew how his kind worked. It was all about manipulation and power play. He had to know who I was by now, and he was obviously trying to fuck with me. Sorry, Mr. Cullen. I'm not some naive daughter of a Head Mistress. I will not be the catnip in your fucked up game to piss off Daddy.

I started towards the door again before he had a chance to respond.

"See ya in bio!" he shouted.

I reached my locker and was almost finished switching over my books when I saw Seth at the other end of the hallway. He saw me too.

I couldn't tell him the truth. Not yet. I had to find out what it all meant. I had to wait until I knew how it all fit together. But I couldn't keep avoiding him forever.

No time like the present.

"Bella," he called out as he approached. "I've been calling you. Did you find out anything?" he asked anxiously.

I opened my mouth to speak, but found myself unable to outright lie to him. So I opted instead for a lie of omission.

"Nothing definitive yet, I'll keep on it and let you know if anything comes of it," I said.

"Did you find out what she was doing there? Who was she meeting?" he asked, as I backed away from him, fleeing towards my class.

"Gotta run, Seth. I'll don't really know anything yet, but I'll let you know when I find out something," I said.

Disappointment washed over his face.

I couldn't blame him. I was disappointed too. I wanted to tell him the truth, but that would have to wait until I was sure what that was.

I rushed away from him, hoping that would be enough to satiate him for a little while, and made it to Mr. Berty's class just as the bell was ringing.

The rest of the morning played out like any other generically routine day in high school.

By the time lunch rolled around, I'd made up my mind about Charlie. I planned to confront him and demand the truth. It was just the two of us now, and we had to be honest with each other. Maybe it would work. Maybe not. But I had to try.

I didn't eat lunch on the quad. I suppose I still wasn't ready for more questioning from Seth. So I sat on a bench outside of the gym and ate my sandwich.

It was supposed to be my quiet place, my alone time.

But things never seem to work out the way I plan.

"Hiding out?" Jasper asked, as he sat down next to me.

"Trying to," I answered with a laugh.

He stared at me silently with his kind eyes and subtle smile. He had a way of looking at me that made me forget we'd ever broken up. It made me want to fall into his arms and let him catch me, like he always did.

But I'm no longer that girl.

"How are you, Jasper?" I asked, trying to restart the conversation. I had to keep talking to keep my mind from wandering. When it wandered, it took me back to too many sweet memories that were now laced with pain.

"Same as always. How about you? How are you holding up?" he asked.

"Same as always," I repeated.

"How's Charlie?" he asked.

I tried not to react at the thought of my lying, potentially adulterous father, but I knew Jasper could see right through me. He always did.

"He's fine," I answered.

Jasper could always pick up on it when I was tense or anxious, and I could tell that he knew something was bothering me. But he didn't pry. It wasn't in his nature.

"I'm always here, Bella," he said, as he reached out and covered my hand with his. "For you, I'm always here."

"Thank you." I nodded in appreciation, feeling embarrassed at how emotional I suddenly felt. My cheeks burned with my blush and I turned my gaze to the ground to avoid eye contact.

"If you ever want to talk, you know how to find me," he said as he stood up, releasing my hand. He looked down at me and let out a soft laugh. "I know you won't, cause I know you. But the offer stands," he said with a shrug. He threw me a light wave as he walked away.

And that was Jasper. Classic Jasper. Always a gentleman. Always there.

He had been my friend for as long as I could remember. It was always just easy to be around him.

I can't say that I didn't see it coming when he broke up with me last year.

Things had changed. I was moody and distrustful and I got a little more indignant every day. The murder of my best friend, Tanya Grayle, tore apart the town and my family. Charlie became public enemy number one when people blamed him for messing up the investigation and for trying to pin it on the most beloved man in town, Carlisle Cullen. Then after everything else, Renee ditched us. It was too much.

Everything changed.

I changed.

I was defensive and confrontational.

One day when Jessica Stanley, gossipy bitch that she is, made some crack about Renee leaving, I'd had enough.

I slapped her across the face.

I'll admit it. It was a bitch move.

But it was my first fight, and I didn't know anything about fighting. I've improved my technique since then. But still, the look on her face was priceless.

But that memory was bittersweet. As satisfying as it was to smack the piss out of Stanley, it cost me Jasper. He said he'd had enough, that he didn't know who I was becoming. He said I was so angry and cynical and not the person he'd fallen in love with.

Then he said the worst part.

He said it hurt him to be around me.

My loving boyfriend, the one that it was so easy to be around told me that it hurt him to be around me. That was painful.

But I understood what he meant about me changing. I was not the same Bella Swan. I would never be the same Bella Swan. I couldn't change that. So I didn't argue with him.

We stopped seeing each other, but he never stopped being so incredibly nice to me. I missed him, more than I would ever admit to him or to Charlie or to anyone that would ask.

Sometimes, I hated it when he was nice to me. It just made me feel like the bitter asshole that I was.

When Jasper was out of sight, I threw away my trash and headed for gym, a class clearly created by a sadist.

After class, I was finishing up in the shower when I heard Rosalie Hale and her minions giggling. I wasn't concerned with whatever juicy bit of gossip they were gushing over at the moment, so I didn't pay much attention. I turned off the water and reached for my towel. As I stepped out of the shower, I noticed the giggles stopped, and the stares began.

Wonder what the latest rumor about me is now?

I paid them little attention as I went to get dressed.

Then I realized what the joke was.

"Where are my clothes?" I demanded. This could not be happening.

Hushed laughter and whispers spread through the locker room.

No one answered.

"Where the _hell_, are my clothes?" I repeated. It probably would have seemed more demanding had I not been wrapped in a towel and dripping wet. Some ignored me, others smirked as they stared.

Rosalie looked me over and laughed as she sauntered away. Lauren Mallory finally broke the silence.

"Oh, you mean, these?" she asked, as she pointed towards one of the toilets.

I walked over to find my clothes shoved into a toilet bowl, soaking wet.

Rose's hyenas exploded into laughter behind me.

I was furious, and revenge would be mine. But first I had to find something to put on. I would _not_ walk across campus to my truck wearing only my towel.

Thoughts of grabbing Rosalie or Lauren or any of them by the hair and smashing their face into the wall flashed through my mind. But the bell rang, interrupting my thoughts, and ushering in the next class, bringing in brand new company to laugh at my predicament.

I stood in front of the clothing filled toilet weighing out my options as the laughs continued behind me.

"Ugh. The people of this town can be so awful," a high voice chirped from behind me.

I turned to see a tiny girl with dark hair standing at my side.

"You have no idea," I replied.

"I'm Alice," she said, extending her hand.

"Hi, I'm Bella. You must be new-" And then I realized there was only one new girl at Forks' High. She must be the other Cullen. Perfect. I expected the other shoe to drop, for her to fire off some snarky comment…but she didn't.

"Yes, I am!" she answered cheerfully. "My brother and I just transferred in." She was all smiles, incredibly friendly.

Surprisingly, she seemed for real. She didn't possess the type of vile attitude I expected.

"Welcome to Forks," I said dryly.

"Thanks!" she replied earnestly. "Hey, do you need something to wear?" she asked.

I hesitated for a moment. Generally speaking I tried to avoid asking for favors, and I certainly did not want to be indebted to a Cullen. But I didn't have a lot of other options, and she seemed alright.

She grabbed me by the wrist and twirled me over to her locker.

"Usually I like to keep a backup outfit or two on hand, but I haven't had a chance to do that yet," she said as she dug through her locker. "Here you go, it's all I have for now. Sorry."

She handed me her gym clothes.

"Don't you need these for class?" I asked.

"I'll sit this one out. No biggie," she said with a smile and a shrug.

I thanked her for the clothes and got dressed.

When did I enter Bizarro World? A nice Cullen, that even seemed cool? There had to be a glitch in the matrix.

I waited till the bell rang again to start the next class before I left the locker room so that there would be fewer people in the halls. I appreciated Alice's gesture, but her tiny shorts were hardly flattering on me. Between the outfit and everything else on my mind, there was no way I was going to Biology that afternoon.

After I cut out of school, I did a quick drive by Charlie's office to make sure he was there before heading back to the apartment. I changed out of Alice's tiny clothes and put them in the wash so I could take them back to her tomorrow.

**Edward POV**

My second day at Forks' High was just as dull as the first.

I needed to find something to do, and fast. Boredom is intolerable.

Carlisle still had me on lockdown. No car, no credit cards, no freedom.

He'd tire of that soon. He didn't care enough to enforce his rules for too long. After all, this is the man that shipped us away to boarding school as soon as we were out of diapers. He needed all of his energy and attention to focus on himself.

I'd just have to ride out the next few days of lockdown, and then he'd be distracted.

He had one of his drivers taking me and Alice to and from school for now, and that shit just made me feel like a tool. I'm all for prestige and privilege, but a limo to and from high school was a total douche move.

That was actually one thing Alice and I agreed on here. She'd been working her pixie magic and begging for a car, so hopefully there would be a reprieve soon.

I was becoming reacquainted with Emmett McCarty. His family used to visit Vail around the same time as us, and we partied together a few times. He wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he did know how to throw a good party. He seemed pretty well cemented into place as part of the social elite here in Forks, so he was a good connection to have.

I sat with him at lunch met a few of his friends. There were a limited number of seats at that table, so I wondered who got kicked out to make room for me. Didn't really matter, but it's good to know I've already got status around here.

After school, we had to stand around and wait for our driver, which pissed me off.

"He'll be here soon. I don't see what the big deal is." Alice tried to assuage me.

"He gets paid to be at a certain place at a certain time," I said. "Tardiness is unacceptable."

Our driver being late was really just the icing on my bored and annoyed cake.

A few minutes later, our driver finally showed, and we headed home. When we pulled up to the house, Carlisle and Esme were standing out front.

"You need to talk to the help about being prompt," I said to Carlisle as I slammed the door behind me.

"Alice, I have a surprise for you," Carlisle said with a smile, ignoring me.

"_We_ have a surprise for you," Esme corrected.

Alice literally started bouncing. She loves surprises. She started doing that thing again where she talks so fast I can't understand her. She wrapped her arms around Esme, and Carlisle led us to the front of the garage.

Unfreakingbelievable.

Parked in the garage with a big red bow on top was a bright yellow Porsche 911 Turbo. I temporarily lost hearing due to Alice's incoherent high-pitched squeals.

"Alice, since you did nothing wrong, but have still had to suffer the consequences of your brother's actions, we thought you deserved a treat," Esme said with a smile.

"This is bullshit," I said. "What? Am I supposed to ride bitch in that thing and be chauffeured around by Alice now?"

"Oh come on, Edward, you know you love it! How could you not?" she asked, as she ran her hand over the top of the car.

"No, you'll still be taken to and from school by one of the drivers," Carlisle said curtly.

"Well, for now…Obviously, you'll need your own car soon," Esme countered.

Carlisle shot her a nasty look, but God love her, she held her ground.

They seemed locked in some sort of argument, and Alice was still bubbling over about her new prize, so I cut out.

"I'll be in my room, I have a lot of studying to get caught up on," I lied.

When I got inside the house, I flipped open my phone and called Emmett.

"You still want to party tonight?" I asked. He responded with a few "Hell yeahs" and took off running with a plan. We decided to take advantage of the nice weather and have a party down at one of the local beaches. I put him in charge of the guest list, reminding him not to invite any undesirables.

I pulled the door to my bedroom shut and locked it and then left through the patio door into the back yard. Emmett picked me up a few houses down.

I thought about calling Alice and telling her about it, but I figured she was still in Porsche heaven, so I left her alone.

By the time the sun set, about thirty of Forks' hottest had gathered for our bonfire party. I was a few drinks deep and enjoying the company of an especially vacuous blonde from my Econ class, when we were rudely interrupted.

Some losers in leather jackets were crashing our party. They were from that bike gang, or whatever the fuck it was.

"Are we in time for s'mores?" asked the shorter one.

"Hey Paul, look, they got the good stuff," the other said, lifting up a beer.

"Ah, good call, Jake. Yum," Paul responded.

The bigger guy, who seemed to think he was their leader or some shit, walked up to me.

"Is this imported?" he asked taking a drink of our beer. He was a beast of a guy, big, and taller than Emmett.

"This is a private party, man." I said.

"Oh, oh, is it? I-I'm sorry. I must have been confused. Hey, let me ask you something. Have you ever come home to find us throwing a kegger in _your_ backyard? No? Then why the _hell_ do you think you can throw a party on our beach?" he sneered.

Emmett was at my side. "Shut the hell up. Are we supposed to apologize because we didn't ask permission? Are you "the leader"? Whatever. Yeah, Jacob, we're all shakin' in our boots here," he said, letting out a big chuckle.

"The Cullens aren't welcome here," he snarled, staring me in the eye.

I didn't know what the fuck this guy's problem was, and frankly, I didn't give a shit. He was crashing my party, and killing my buzz. A few more of Emmett's buddies gathered around behind us.

"Listen, why don't you take your little girlfriend here," I said motioning to Paul, "and scurry along."

His jaw was locked and he was grinding his teeth. His hands were tightened into fists.

"Don't let him talk to you like that, Jacob. I got your back," Paul heckled.

Our dialogue was interrupted by the siren of a police car.

Nearly everyone scattered, but Emmett stayed at my side. I gotta give him props for that; he's loyal. His bitchy girlfriend was nagging him to leave, but he held his ground. Jacob and his little friend stayed, too.

I didn't know what his deal was, but as long as he held his ground, I'll be damned if I was backing down first.

Finally Paul slapped him on the shoulder and motioned for them to go.

"I mean it. Stay off my res. Next time it won't be 14 on two," he snarled.

"I will remember that," I said evenly.

And then they took off.

"Some party, bro," Emmett said laughing.

His girlfriend, Rosalie looked livid.

"I hate Jacob Black," she hissed.

"Aw, come on babe, don't be mad. We'll make up for it this weekend," he said, rubbing her arms. "Party at my place this Friday? No way those dogs mess with us there. Edward, what do you say?"

"Sounds like a plan," I agreed.

**Bella POV**

I decided I would cook a nice dinner for Charlie, and then confront him about Esme during it. That might sound underhanded, but I know him, and he lets his guard down when he's around food. I'd need any advantage I could muster if I was going to get the truth out of him.

By the time Charlie arrived, the lasagna I'd baked was being kept warm in the oven and I was chopping the cucumber for our salad.

"Wow. Smells good in here," Charlie said with a big grin as walked in the front door. "This is a nice surprise. Thanks, Bells. You didn't have to go through all this trouble."

Sure I did. How else am I going to soften you up before I pull out the hard questions?

"It's no trouble," I said instead. "How was your trip?"

I removed the lasagna from the oven and carried it to the table.

"Eh, nothing too exciting. Turns out the jumper had skipped out before I got there, so it was a bust," he said.

Yeah, sure he skipped out. It just turned out the bail jumper you were looking for wasn't hiding under the bed in Esme Cullen's motel room. Big surprise.

He sat down in his usual seat and prepared his plate of food. At first he seemed a little confused by my hospitality, but as expected, he brushed it aside and began to eat. I made myself a plate and took a few bites, but I wasn't really hungry. I was pondering how to phrase my question.

"How's school going?" he asked with a full mouth.

"Great," I said. Perfect segue, Charlie. Thanks. "I got a new lab partner this week."

"Oh yeah? That's great," he responded, uninterested.

"Yeah. It's Edward Cullen." I studied his reaction. His mouth full of food, his chewing slowed down as he stared back at me. I watched as he choked down his bite of food and reached for a drink of water before speaking.

"Is that right?" he asked. "Well, I've heard some bad things, so I want you to be careful. But, those kids are new in town, so try to be nice. Make them feel welcome," he said.

Make them feel welcome? Come on, Charlie.

"Is that what you were doing last night?" I asked. He looked confused. "Making Esme Cullen feel welcome, down at the Camelot?"

How's that for going all in?

I thought Charlie was going to have a coronary. His face went from surprise, to embarrassment to anger in a split second, his cheeks flushed.

He slammed his hands down on the table and shoved his chair back. I couldn't help but jump at the sudden jarring. He started pacing around the table.

"Damn it, Bella!" he shouted. "What the hell do you think you're doing? Are you following me around now?"

"_Should_ I be following you around?" I asked, defiantly. "What are you doing meeting her? Her! Of all the people-"

"You don't know what you're talking about," he said. He actually waved his finger in my face. Disgusted, I shoved my chair back from the table and stood up, too.

"Then please, enlighten me. Tell me what you were doing – in that place, with Esme _Cullen_ of all the freaking people!" I couldn't help but shout at him.

My emotions were swelling and everything felt exposed, right there on the surface.

He lied to me.

About Esme Cullen.

Had he lied to Renee, too?

"I'm the adult here, Bella, and what I say goes. You stay out of this. Do you hear me?" he asked, his voice still raised.

I'd backed up against the kitchen wall. I bit my lip, trying to fight off my emotions, but they were already boiling over. I felt the familiar sting as my eyes filled with tears. I tried to blink them away. My throat felt closed off.

"Are you having an affair? With her?" I asked through my tear filled eyes.

Charlie clenched his jaw and ran his hand over his face, exhaling a deep breath.

He said nothing.

Betrayal met with outrage and cut through me.

"You are," I said, the realization sinking in. "You're cheating on mom, with that nasty b-"

"Watch your mouth, Bella," he interrupted. I started to respond but he held his hand up to stop me. "It's not what you think, okay."

"Okay?!" I repeated, incredulously.

"It's not," he said.

"Well then, what is it?" I demanded.

He let out a sigh and slumped his shoulders. He looked deflated, like something was gnawing at him.

He closed his eyes and put his hand to his temple before finally continuing.

"It's about a case. It's for an investigation," he finally said.

"What case? Is this about Tanya? What does Esme know? Why didn't you tell me? Does she know why Carlisle –"

"Bella-" he started.

"What did she tell you? Why did-"

"Bella! Enough," he said, sternly.

But there was one more question I had to ask before I could hear anything else he had to say.

"Why did you lie to me?" I asked meekly, feeling the burn of my tears returning to my eyes.

"I'm sorry," he finally said.

I was furious with myself that I'd allowed my emotions to betray me. I blinked away my remaining tears and cleared my throat. Charlie looked helpless as he stood in front of me, unsure what to say or do. If I hadn't been so disgusted with him, I might have felt sorry for him.

"I need to know," I said softly. "I need to know that I can trust you."

After everything else, I needed to know I still had this one person that I could count on.

"Of course you can trust me," he said. "But you don't need to know everything. There are some things that you're better off not being a part of."

"It's just me and you now, dad," I said. "You can't-- don't lie to me, please."

We stared at each other for an extended moment. I watched his face as he decided what he was going to tell me. I held my ground to show him that I wasn't going to let this one go.

When he finally spoke his voice was contrite, cautious.

"A few weeks ago I got a call from Esme. She told me she had some information about a case. Because of the sensitive nature of her information, and given the history between our families, she insisted on meeting at the Camelot. She didn't want to risk being seen, so much for that. That's it. That's all it is Bella," he said.

"What kind of information? Is it about Tanya? You should have just told me," I said.

"Bella, I mean it," he said, drawing his hand to his brow again. "I want you to stay away from this. I want you to promise me you're going to stay away from this, okay?"

I scoffed.

"Now your turn. What were you doing at the Camelot?" he asked.

"Working on a case," I responded.

"Damn it, Bella-" he snapped.

"Okay, I'm sorry. Seth Clearwater gave me a tip about Esme going there. I was just following up to see if it was legit," I answered.

He just shook his head.

"I'm not going to ask you again. I want you to stay away from this. Do you understand me?" he asked.

I nodded my head, but couldn't bring myself to speak.

I believed him that it was about a case, but it bothered me that he was holding out on me. I decided not to push, for now. I'd check the safe later and see if I could find anything out from his notes in the file.

I don't know what's true anymore.

But a long time ago, I made a choice. I chose to stand by Charlie.

It's a decision I live with every day.


	4. The Cullens Always Ring Twice

**A/N: Thanks again to everyone that helped me with feedback and suggestions on this, and thanks to Rei for uploading for me. **

**A few technical glitches caused me to be posted this later than I expected. I hope to have Chapter 5 up pretty soon. Thanks for reading!**

**Chapter 4: The Cullens Always Ring Twice**

Sometimes, when you least expect it, things change.

The people you thought you could count on let you down, and the people you'd least expect show up.

It was early Saturday morning, and I had just finished making scrambled eggs for Charlie and myself when the doorbell rang.

I opened the door to find Edward Cullen, beaten and bruised, standing in front of me.

He was disheveled and looked as though he'd been up all night. His lip was busted and he had dried blood smeared down his jaw. His clothes were stained, his shirt ripped down the side.

Behind me, I heard the creak of the floorboards as Charlie made his way down the hall. I stepped out the door, pulling it up behind me in an attempt to hide Edward from Charlie's view.

"What are you doing here?" I whispered, anxiously, confused.

"Bells, who is it?" Charlie asked from behind me, mid-yawn, in his half-asleep voice.

"I got it, dad," I said quickly, trying to block his view of Edward with the door.

I looked at Edward expectantly, waiting for his answer. He raised his head slowly and stared at me, his eyes red and dampened.

Then he spoke four words that changed everything.

"I need your help," he said solemnly.

_**Two Days Earlier**_

Thursday morning I sat in my truck anxiously, dreading school even more than usual. I'd blown off classes the day before because after my confrontation with Charlie, I just needed some time to think, to clear my head. The last place I was equipped to deal with was Forks' High.

But I couldn't hide forever.

So there I sat, tapping my fingers on the steering wheel, prolonging the inevitable. Alice Cullen's freshly laundered gym clothes were folded on the seat next to me, waiting to be returned. I wanted to get that exchange over with as soon as possible, so I hoped to spot her before long.

The Cullen's were apparently being chauffeured to school, so I was keeping an eye out for their limo but then I saw a yellow Porsche zip into the parking lot.

No way.

Even Carlisle Cullen wouldn't be ridiculous enough to buy his 16- year old a Porsche, right?

Wrong. I watched incredulously as Alice hopped out of the car, making her entrance.

When I saw a clearly irritated Edward climb out of the passenger seat, I couldn't help but laugh. Being chauffeured around by his little sister didn't exactly complement the type of image he was trying to project for himself.

I watched as the two made their way from the parking lot to the courtyard. I decided to get it over with and return Alice's clothes to her before the bitches of Forks had a chance to corrupt her niceness and turn her into another Swan-hater.

Of course, the Cullens had already secured themselves seats at the elite table. Alice and Edward were sitting next to Emmett McCarty and across from Jessica Stanley, and Rosalie and Jasper Hale.

I took a deep breath and walked up to the table. I noticed Jasper watching me, but I didn't make eye contact with him.

"Hey Alice," I called out. "I have your clothes." I held up the small folded stack.

"Bella! Hi!" Alice sang out, as she jumped up and skipped over to me. She threw her arms around me and gave me a hug. She was so damn perky, I wondered briefly if she was on medication.

"Here," I said, handing her the clothes. "Thanks again. I really appreciate you helping me out."

Everyone at the table sat in silence as they stared at the two of us. Alice Cullen was committing social suicide, and she had no idea.

"Don't be silly, Bella. It was no trouble at all," Alice said. "Here, come sit with us."

Rosalie let out an audible gasp. Emmett, Edward and Jessica turned to look at her, while Jasper kept his eyes on me and Alice. She must have heard Rosalie, but Alice paid no attention to her reaction.

"You know, I should actually get going," I said. "Thanks again."

But Alice grabbed my wrist and pulled me over to the table. For such a tiny thing, she was actually damn strong, and I stumbled trying to keep pace with her. She slid onto the bench, pulling me down next to her.

"You'd better get those sterilized," Rosalie said, nodding towards the clothes I'd just returned to Alice.

"Probably better just to burn them," Jessica snapped.

"Better get a tetanus shot," Emmett chuckled. The three of them giggled at their jokes while the rest of us were silent.

Alice stared at them as they snickered among themselves.

"You're really not funny," Alice finally said. "In fact, you're just rude, and I find it obnoxious."

Holy shit. Hell just froze over.

A Cullen just defended a Swan, and to Rosalie Hale, no less. The social structure of Forks just flipped.

Suddenly no one was laughing.

I couldn't help but feel concern for Alice. As satisfying as it was to watch someone call out Rosalie, Alice had no idea what she was about to get herself into.

"You know what? It's fine. I really need to get going. Thanks again, Alice," I said. "Rosalie, it's always a pleasure," I added dryly.

Just as I stood up, Alice grabbed me by the wrist and pulled me back down. She was really much stronger than she looked.

"Sit down," she hissed. "Listen, Bella here is my friend. And I want her to sit with me. Anyone that has a problem with that is welcome to leave," Alice said firmly, staring Rosalie straight in the eye.

What the hell? Since when was I her friend? What was she trying to prove?

I probably should have stepped in and said something on Alice's behalf, but I was speechless. And she didn't seem to need my help anyways.

"Listen here, _new_ _girl_," Rosalie spat out through clenched teeth. "I don't know who you think you are, but I refuse to sit across from Bella Swan and –"

"Then there's plenty of other tables where you might feel more comfortable," Alice interjected.

"You little _bitch_-" Rosalie snarled.

"Rosalie, _enough_!" We all turned in shock at Jasper's uncharacteristically rigid tone. His face was fierce as he locked eyes with his sister. Even-tempered Jasper was putting his foot down. He wore a look of determination so intent that not even Emmett spoke up to oppose him.

These surprises were giving me whiplash. I had somehow got caught in the middle of a social power struggle. Alice Cullen was not going to be content being just another one of Rosalie Hale's cronies.

But Rosalie was not one to give up without a fight.

"Whatever. Have fun at the new loser table," Rosalie said, clearly flustered and unable to come up with an adequate response. She stood up and looked at the rest of the group expectantly. Jessica was at her side in an instant, but Emmett was still awestruck and staring at Alice. Finally Rosalie grabbed his arm and he got up and left with her.

"Sorry about her. Rosalie's downright vicious sometimes," Jasper said.

_Sometimes?_

I wasn't sure if he was talking to me or to Alice, but before either of us could respond, Edward spoke.

"Now that was interesting." He seemed impressed. "It's about damn time something interesting happened in this place," he said, as he let out a slight chuckle.

"I think I'm really going to like it here," Alice said with a smile. "And Bella, you're always welcome to sit with us."

What was she thinking? I had no idea why she was being so nice to me. Hospitality felt so foreign that it made my head spin. There was a social coup d'état taking place in Forks. If anyone could dethrone Rosalie Hale, it would surely be a Cullen.

Mike Newton came up and took Emmett's now empty seat. He started asking Alice some questions about her Porsche, distracting her. Jasper seemed a million miles away, lost in his own thoughts or something. It seemed like the perfect moment for me to slip away unnoticed.

I'd taken exactly one step when Edward spoke.

"See ya in Bio," he said, as he flashed me a grin.

"Yeah, see ya," I answered, unsure what else to say.

Rosalie glared at me all through English class, and Emmett just kept rubbing her shoulders trying to relax her. Part of me wondered if Alice was just using me as a pawn to manipulate Rosalie and get a rise out of her. It was possible, but Alice seemed incredibly sincere and I couldn't help but like her. But no good would come of me developing a fondness for a Cullen, even Alice.

When lunch rolled around I had no intention of a repeat performance from the morning, so I went back to my usual bench outside the gym. I had just finished my sandwich and was about to walk to the trashcan.

"There you are!" a chipper voice called out. Alice Cullen bounced around the corner and plopped down next to me.

How did she find me? Jasper was the only one that knew this was my hiding spot.

_Damn_. I couldn't believe he'd given information out. _Way to sell me out, Jas._

"Hi Alice," I said.

"I was looking for you," she said, disappointed. "I saved you a seat and everything."

It was time to put a stop to this. Whether this was some innocent but misguided attempt to be friendly, or some twisted manipulation game – either way, it had to stop.

"Listen Alice, I appreciate what you're trying to do. But really, you don't have to do this," I said. "I'm fine. You don't have to take me in like some stray puppy."

She looked offended.

"But Bella, I really think we can be friends," she said. "Won't you even give me a chance?"

Even though I'd seen attitude and strength in her that morning, she was so tiny that she looked fragile. There was still something about her that seemed like she needed protecting. But I wasn't in the business of protecting naïve underclassmen, no matter how sweet they might seem.

She helped me out with the gym clothes situation, so I owed her a solid. She'd been nice to me, so I'd be nice to her. But that would be it.

"It's nothing personal, Alice, really," I said. "Why are you doing this anyway? You just met me. You hardly know me."

She looked up at me, her eyes full of an emotion I couldn't quite identify. Her sudden intensity caught me off guard. She paused for a moment, chewing her lip, before she finally spoke.

"Tanya used to talk about you," she said quietly.

I froze, my body tensed, when I heard Tanya's name.

"She was always really cool to me, you know? Most of Edward's friends didn't want anything to do with me. We'd be on these long vacations with the family, and I know this just sounds like whiney rich kid crap, but it would get really boring, really lonely sometimes," she explained.

"We didn't have a lot of people to choose from when it came to hanging out, and being just a little bit younger than the others meant that I'd get left out," Alice said. "But Tanya didn't do that, she wasn't like that. She never made me feel like some annoying tag-along little sister. She included me. She'd invite me along, even when Edward didn't want me to go," she said with a laugh. "She'd always talk him into letting me go out and hang with them."

"That sounds like Tanya," I said softly. Hearing Alice talk about Tanya was more emotional for me than I would have expected. I had my own memories of Tanya, but I never shared those with anyone else.

"She was so good to me," she said. "She talked about you a lot, you know?"

I shrugged.

"Well, she did. I just thought you should know that. She really loved you, like a sister." Alice's voice was soft, kind.

"Thanks," I said. "It's nice to talk to someone else that actually knew her. I mean, sure, people around here knew her by reputation, but they didn't know the _real_ her."

"I know exactly what you mean," Alice responded, nodding her head. "So, listen, it _is_ a little weird, given our families' history, but I'd like it if we could be friends. I know you've been through a lot, and I don't expect us to bond overnight or anything. Just don't close yourself off to the possibility, okay?" she asked.

I stared at her for a second. She was this compact ball of energy, full of life. I could see how Tanya would have loved her. In fact, Tanya was probably grooming her to follow in her own footsteps.

But was Alice Cullen for real? Did she really want to be my friend?

_Could_ we be friends?

As she stared up at me expectantly, her eyes wide with anticipation, I didn't know what to say.

"Sure," I said finally, with a shrug as I nodded.

Again, she pounced on me, squeezing me tightly into a hug. She was squealing something unintelligible.

I know it was probably wrong of me to look at it like this, but in the back of my mind I couldn't help thinking that having an in with the Cullen family could be very useful to the investigation.

Later that afternoon when I got to Biology, my lab table was empty. When the bell rang and Banner started class, it was still empty. I figured Edward had either transferred out or skipped. Then right in mid-introduction, Banner was interrupted when Cullen decided to show.

"Mr. Cullen, I'm glad you decided to join us," Banner said, dryly.

Edward just nodded his direction and made his way down the aisle to our table. I swear he doesn't walk, he actually struts. _What an ass._

He slid into the seat next to me as Banner finished giving instructions for the day's lab. Edward reached for the microscope in the middle of our table and took out his notebook.

"You were gone for a couple of days," Edward said, as though it was a question.

"Your sister seems really nice," I said, changing the subject.

"She is. She's very determined, too. She tends to get her way." He switched the slide from the microscope. "Since she seems to have her sights set on the two of you being pals, you might as well accept it and get used to the idea." He slid the microscope across the table to me. "Resistance is futile when it comes to Alice," he said with a laugh.

Of course. All the Cullens were used to getting their way.

"I think I caught a glimpse of her tenacity this morning," I said.

He paused, raising his hand to his brow as if contemplating something.

"Yeah, what was that all about anyway?" he asked.

"I figured you of all people would understand why I'm – why my family is not liked around here," I said. What did he expect me to say?

"Hmm. That's right. You think Carlisle is a murderer," he said in a patronizingly casual tone.

"I think he's hiding something. What exactly that is, I don't know. But I do know that Charlie was on the right track with the investigation," I replied, instantly in defensive mode.

"You call your dad 'Charlie'?" he asked.

"You call _your_ dad 'Carlisle'?" I asked.

"Fair enough," he said, seeming amused. "But you do realize that someone already confessed for the murder, right?"

"_You_ do realize that Carlisle lied to the police, right?" I snapped. "And that he never explained what Tanya was doing at-"

"Whoa, hey, I'll be the first one to tell you that Carlisle is one shady fucker," he said, smirking as he held his hands up defensively.

He was pissing me off. How could he not take this seriously?

"But anyway, what's it to _Rosalie_ if you've got a grudge against _my_ dad?" he asked.

"A long time ago we were friends," I said with a shrug. "Then things got ugly, and Rose discovered that leading an assault against me made her even more popular," I said with a sigh, contemplating. "Now I think she just enjoys it because she's a sadistic bitch."

"Yeah, I definitely see that," he said shaking his head, unleashing a low chuckle.

"I'm not sure Alice knows what she's getting herself into," I said. "Rosalie can make her life hell."

If Alice wouldn't take my warning, maybe her big brother would.

"Alice is tougher than she looks," he said proudly. His adoration of his little sister slipped through and revealed itself in his response. It was unexpected, and slightly endearing.

I stared at him for a moment contemplating how dissimilar he was from what I had expected.

"What?" he asked. I must have had a strange look on my face.

"Don't underestimate Rosalie," I said. "She's unparalleled in her scheming."

Just as he opened his mouth to speak, Banner called on us. I didn't even hear what the question was, but Edward spoke up right away.

"Metaphase," he answered, without taking his eyes off of me. I don't know how the hell he did it. It was like he picked the answer right out of Banner's head.

"I hear your dad's a private detective or something now," Edward said.

I nodded in response. I wasn't sure what sort of information he was fishing for, but I wasn't too keen on volunteering anything up just yet.

"I also heard you work with him," he continued.

"A little," I lied. In reality, I was at Charlie's office after school nearly every day. I was as obsessed with finding the truth as he was.

"What do you do? Help him catch cheating spouses and shit?" he asked.

"What's it to you?" I asked.

"I just think it's interesting, that's all," he answered defensively.

We continued with the lab for a while before he finally broke the silence.

"Are you always this rude?" he snapped.

"Sometimes I'm even ruder," I snapped back.

I wasn't even sure why Edward Cullen irritated me so much. But he was somehow constantly throwing me off balance, catching me off guard. It was unsettling. I'd have to be careful around him.

We didn't talk much the rest of class. When the bell rang, releasing us, he smiled and waved as he left, but said nothing else.

On my way through the parking lot, Seth Clearwater found me again.

"Bella, wait up," he called out, jogging towards me. "I think we should get together this weekend and brainstorm some ideas for working on the case. What do you think?"

"I think that's a really bad idea, Seth. I'll see what I can do, but I really think it's better if you don't get mixed up in this," I said.

"Did you hear about the Cullen party at La Push?" he asked, ignoring my statement.

"What? No way. When?" I asked.

"Yeah, I guess they were throwing one of their keggers and Jacob and Paul went to bust it up," he said, smiling. I'm not sure if it was the thought of Jacob and Paul busting up a rich kid party, or if it was that he knew the gossip before me that pleased him more. "But then the cops showed and everyone took off. He and Edward Cullen had words though."

Edward Cullen and Jacob Black exchanging words down at La Push – now there's something I would have loved to have seen.

I was just about to ask Seth for more details when a voice spoke up from behind me.

"Hey, there you are." It was Edward. "Listen, I'm throwing a party tomorrow night, you should come. Well, both of you should come." He motioned to Seth who looked thrilled at the invite.

"Cool," Seth replied excitedly.

Edward Cullen had no idea he'd just invited Harry Clearwater's kid to his party.

"Especially you, Bella. You should come," Edward said as he flashed me another one of those damned crooked grins.

"Haven't you heard? I'm not allowed in the first class cabin," I said.

"Come on, it's my party, and I say come. I mean, let bygones be bygones," he said.

"Yeah, well I'm sure Carlisle would not be thrilled to have me in his home," I said.

"First of all, who gives a shit what Carlisle thinks?" he said, smiling. "Second of all, this particular shindig is not at my house anyway, it's at McCarty's."

"Ha, oh yes, that _is_ much better," I said sarcastically.

"Well, just think about it okay? I'm sure Alice would love it if you came. We're cutting out early to go to Port Angeles tomorrow afternoon, but hopefully I'll see you at the party," he said. He turned to Seth. "See if you can convince her, okay? What was your name?"

"Seth," he answered quickly, extending his hand.

"Good to meet you, Seth. I'm Edward," he said as he shook Seth's hand.

As Edward walked away, Seth turned to me with an amused grin on his face.

"No," I said flatly, shaking my head. "Absolutely not. And you shouldn't go either, Seth. I _will_ help you with the case, but we're not going into the lion's den…not yet anyway."

"Whatever you say, boss," he said, light-heartedly mocking me.

"Ugh, don't call me that," I groaned. "I'll call you this weekend and we'll get together to go over everything, okay?"

"Thank you so much, Bella. I really appreciate this," he gushed excitedly. "This is gonna be great. You won't regret this."

Let's hope not.

As Seth walked away, I watched Edward Cullen climb in to ride shotgun in Alice's shiny new Porsche. I wasn't sure why he'd invited me to his party, but I wasn't ruling out the possibility that it could all be a part of some sick joke he was planning.

No way was I going to a fucking Cullen party.

I watched as they drove away, laughing and smiling.

But it didn't matter. It didn't matter that the Cullens were being nice to me. It didn't change anything.

Edward Cullen was bad news.

I knew he was bad news years ago when Tanya first mentioned him. I knew he was bad news that first day he walked into my Biology lab.

And I knew it the next time I saw him, on Saturday morning, when he stood at my doorstep, broken and bruised, asking for my help. I wedged myself between the door and the jam, hoping like hell that Charlie wouldn't see who was standing at our front door.

"I need your help," Edward said.

I wanted to tell him to leave, to stay away from me. I hardly knew him, and I had no reason to like or to even trust him.

But as he stood there, he seemed to have somehow transformed into something less despicable. I no longer saw the repulsive, narcissistic spawn of my father's enemy. He suddenly appeared vulnerable.

And he was asking for my help.

And even still, though I could no longer find it within me to despise him, I knew better than to get involved, and I was just about to close the door in his face when he said three more words that made my decision for me.

"It's for Alice," he breathed

I was suddenly overflowing with questions. Taking quick inventory of Edward's battered and disheveled appearance, I knew this had to be bad. I couldn't imagine what type of scenario it would take to land him on my doorstep at eight in the morning asking for help, and I couldn't imagine what I could possibly do to help, but I knew that I would try. I had to try to help, for Alice, because she had helped me.

"Who is-" Charlie started.

He stopped in his tracks and stared at Edward. I don't know if he'd ever met Edward Cullen before that moment, but the resemblance to his parents was obvious.

I'm sure Charlie knew who he was immediately.

"This is Edward," I said, stepping back and pulling the door open. "He's my lab partner, remember? We have a project to work on." I glared at Edward, willing him to get the message.

"Yes," he stammered. "That's right, a Bio project. I'm Edward Cullen, it's nice to meet you, Mr. Swan," he said as he extended his hand to Charlie.

Charlie looked down at it as though it were some strange foreign object. He finally extended his own and shook Edward's hand.

"Edward," he said. "You look like hell. Rough night?"

"You could say that," Edward replied, and his eyes darted towards me.

Charlie stared at him quizzically.

"Dad, your breakfast is ready," I said, nodding towards the kitchen.

"Oh, alright, great," he said as he turned. He stopped to throw one more skeptical look at Edward. "Good luck with the project. You staying here, or you heading out?"

"We're heading out, actually," I said. "I won't be late."

Charlie went to the kitchen to eat his breakfast.

I followed Edward down to the parking lot. He walked up to a shiny new silver Volvo and opened the door.

"Whoa, gift from Daddy?" I asked.

"Actually it's a gift from Mommy to piss off Daddy," he said indifferently.

Sometimes I think the rich are a different species all together.

"I'll drive," I said, motioning towards my truck.

"I'm not going to leave my car here, and it doesn't make sense to take two cars," he said, annoyed.

I started to protest, but decided to let it go. I climbed into the Volvo and he started the engine. I expected him to start talking, to explain what was going on, but he didn't. He just drove out of the parking lot, staring ahead silently.

"What happened to you?" I finally asked. "Where are we going?"

"I'm taking you to see Alice," he said flatly. "For a detective I'd think it's fairly obvious that I was in a fight."

"With who? What does this have to do with Alice? Is she okay?" I asked.

"Jacob Black. And…I don't know," he answered.

"Okay, start at the beginning. Tell me what happened," I pressed.

"Alice was roofied, okay?" he snapped. "Someone fucking drugged her, and when I find out for sure who it was, I'm going to rip his fucking head off."

"Oh my God," I mumbled. "Why did you come to me? You need to go to the police! This is serious. Was she ra-"

"No," he snarled. "Jasper found her. And no cops, no fucking way."

"Edward, this isn't some after school project. You need to let the police handle this," I said gently.

"First of all, Alice made me swear no cops. She doesn't want Carlisle and Esme to find out, she's embarrassed and afraid they'll ship her out of here," he said. "Second, what good would it do? Some shithead gets a slap on the wrist until their daddy comes and bails them out? No way. I'm handling this on my own."

"Where are we going?" I asked again. I realized we were going the wrong way to be heading to the Cullen estate.

"Alice didn't want to go home just yet; she's still pretty shaken up. She's at Emmett's house," he said.

"You left her alone with _Emmett_ and _Rosalie_?" I asked in amazement. They were perhaps the two worst people I could think of to care for someone after a traumatic event.

"I left her with _Jasper_," he said defensively. "He's the one that found her, and he's been with her ever since."

I felt relief with the knowledge that Jasper was with her. He was compassionate and comforting, and also strong and protective. He was exactly what she needed right now.

"Wait, what does this have to do with Jacob?" I asked, realizing I still had so few of the pieces of this puzzle.

"Those fuckers showed up and crashed the party. A few minutes after they left, Jasper found Alice. Emmett told me that a bunch of those La Push guys deal, so once I knew Alice was safe, I went to go have a talk with him," he explained.

"You think _Jacob_ drugged Alice?" I asked. "Look, Jacob is a lot of things, but he's not a rapist."

"Listen, I came to you because I heard you're good at tracking things down. Just find out who did this, and I'll take care of it," he said evenly.

I started to make another push for him to call the police, but as I looked up at his bloodshot, determined eyes, I knew it would have been futile.

Who would want to hurt Alice?

Rosalie and her followers were vicious, but would they really go this far?

Jacob and the La Push crew definitely hated the Cullens, but were they capable of something this awful?

As we pulled into the driveway of Randall and Victoria McCarty's home, I saw Rosalie and Emmett sitting on the front steps.

The entire scene felt surreal. My head was abuzz with questions, and I knew I would find answers to those questions, because that's what I do. I climbed out of the silver Volvo and walked alongside Edward, and I couldn't believe I was really here.

But sometimes that's what happens. The people you'd least expect show up, and they affect your life in ways you never would have imagined.

And that's when things start to change.

**Reviews are a nicer surprise than Edward Cullen showing up on my doorstep. Okay, maybe not, but I do love and appreciate them :) !**

**I'm hoping to have the next installment up very soon.**


	5. Rohypnol and Old Lace

**A/N: Thanks again to everyone that helped me with feedback and opinions: Kim, Rei, Gabi, Bec and Sheeeri. A special thanks to Gabi for uploading this for me.  
This is a long one, I hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think. I hope to have Chapter 6 ready in about a week.  
Thanks for reading.**

**Chapter 5: Rohypnol and Old Lace**

Uncovering the truth is never easy because lies never exist exclusively. One deception leads to another, and before you know it, you're waist deep in more questions than answers. But, you have to start somewhere, and if you're lucky, when it's all over you're at least one step closer to finding the real truth.

"What the hell is she doing here?" Rosalie demanded as we walked up the drive to the McCarty house.

"Babe, come on, be cool," Emmett mumbled as he wrapped his arms around her. His signature snarky grin was noticeably absent.

"I asked Bella for her help," Edward said soberly.

"Oh, sweet Jesus. This is just great. Now we're all going to get arrested," she groaned as she shot me another ferocious look. "The Swans are known for going after the wrong people."

"Shut the hell up," Edward snapped quickly, turning on Rosalie. "Do you hear me? I don't want to hear another fucking word from you."

Rosalie turned to Emmett expectantly, waiting for him to jump to her defense.

"Just stay out of it, Rose," Emmett said. "It's his sister, okay? Let's just back off." That reaction was sure to land him in the doghouse.

I started to speak. "I think if I just-"

"You know what? No one cares what you think Bella," Rosalie hissed.

"I care what she thinks," Edward snapped back. He leaned into her, his face only inches from hers and spoke slowly. "I'm not going to tell you again: Shut the hell up, and stay out of this. When we want you to speak, you will be spoken to. And I don't want to hear another sound from you until then. Think you can remember that?"

I swear to God, I thought he was going to slap her. And I'm not gonna lie, I almost hoped he would. Rosalie looked like her head was going to explode.

Edward kept his eyes focused on her as he reached for the door.

"Bella, let's go see Alice now," he said. "You can talk to these two later."

As I walked into the foyer of the McCarty house, I tried to remember the last time I'd been there. It had to have been at least a year ago. Back then I used to attend Emmett's parties on a regular basis; it was our weekly routine.

I followed Edward up the winding staircase, looking at the pretentious artwork adorning the walls. The entire house felt very much for show and very little for function.

I hoped that Emmett's parents weren't home. If Carlisle Cullen was the most famous man in town, then Randall McCarty was second. He owned Olympic Air, a small airline specializing in private jets and regional flights for the wealthy. He made a fortune catering to the indulgent whims of the rich and famous.

The people of Forks loved him because he brought in jobs. He had half the town on his payroll, and over at La Push, nearly everyone worked for him. Most of those that didn't work for Emmett's dad worked for Rosalie and Jasper's dad at his software conglomerate.

The Cullens, the McCartys and the Hales combined to make the trifecta of Forks' Royalty.

Randall McCarty stirred up a social scandal about three years ago when he divorced Emmett's mother, Charlotte, and married the much younger Victoria. After the drawn out divorce and an undisclosed settlement, Charlotte McCarty left town. I suppose she was too humiliated to stay. I can't say I blame her. The gossips in this town are relentless.

Victoria was a gorgeous redhead with the kind of body that every girl envied. She was one of those generic model/actress types. The terms "gold-digger" and "trophy wife" were invented for women like Victoria. She was also manipulative and spiteful, qualities that made her fit right in with the wealthy women of Forks.

We rounded the corner and Edward was about to open the door to one of the guest bedrooms when I stopped him.

"You should really take her to a doctor," I said.

"I promised her that Carlisle wouldn't find out," he said firmly.

"Okay," I agreed. I wanted to argue with him, to demand that he listen, but it seemed pointless. I could see in his eyes that he was unwavering in this. So against my better judgment, I complied.

He opened the bedroom door and I saw Alice, so tiny in the bed that the fluffy comforter seemed to swallow her. Her eyes were closed, her cheeks streaked with mascara from her tears. She was frail and shattered, and the sight of her broke my heart.

Jasper was in a chair at her bedside, leaning in, watching her. She had one hand draped over the edge of the bed and it rested lazily in his grasp. As the door creaked open, he straightened in his seat, putting a finger to his lips to quiet us as he motioned towards the sleeping Alice.

He delicately returned Alice's hand to the bed and stood to join us in the hall.

"Hey Bella," Jasper whispered, pulling the door shut behind him. "I hope you don't mind that I told Edward you could help."

"Not at all," I replied. "I want to do whatever I can."

"How is she?" Edward asked Jasper.

"She's still pretty out of it," Jasper shrugged.

"I need you to tell me what happened," I said, trying to focus.

"A little after one, I was coming back from getting another drink," Jasper said. "When I came past the downstairs guest room, I saw Newton and Crowley. They were hovering around, acting goofy," he continued. "Then I saw Alice. She was obviously more than just drunk, she was nearly passed out, totally out of it, curled up on the chaise."

"Newton and Crowley took off before I got to them," Edward interjected.

"They swore they just stumbled in and found her like that," Jasper explained. "I don't know what to believe. But at the time, I was more concerned with making sure she was okay."

"When was the last time either of you saw her before that?" I asked.

"I talked to her right around midnight," Jasper answered.

I turned to Edward expectantly, waiting for his answer.

"I don't know," he shrugged. "She was doing her thing, and I was doing mine."

I was furious with him for not keeping a closer eye on his little sister. Hadn't I warned him that these people were cruel and vicious?

"Did either of you notice who she was hanging around with or who she was talking to?" I asked.

"I saw her talking to Mike a few times, and Jessica and Lauren at one point," Jasper answered.

"When did Jacob and his guys show up?" I asked.

"Maybe 11:30?" Edward answered.

"I'll go talk to him, see what I can find out," I said. "When people are buying or selling drugs, he knows."

"That might be kinda hard to do," Edward said.

I looked at him curiously.

"He's kinda…well, he got arrested," he explained.

"He – he what?" I stammered. "You had him arrested? I thought you said no cops?"

"It's not like I called the cops. When I went to talk to him, things got a little out of control," he said.

"A little?" I said, gesturing to his ripped shirt and bloody hands.

"It got all fucked up, okay. He wouldn't answer my questions. Those people hate us, and I don't care why. This time they took it too fucking far," he rambled defensively.

"But you weren't arrested?" I asked.

As if I needed to ask, of course they wouldn't go after a Cullen. No cop in this town wants to wind up the next Charlie Swan for taking down a Cullen.

"First, you need to call and get him released. Tell them it was a misunderstanding and that you're not pressing charges," I said. "Trust me; he's better to us if he's out of jail. And I'm going to need access to a computer. If you're not taking Alice to a doctor, I need to at least do some research and see what we should be doing for her."

"There's one in the room at the end of the hall," Jasper volunteered. "It's Mr. McCarty's study; it should have everything you need."

"Perfect," I said. "Jasper, you stay with Alice. Edward, talk to Emmett, get me a list of everyone that was here last night. And I mean everyone, don't edit. Leave that to me."

Jasper slipped back into the guest room and Edward started towards the stairs.

"Edward," I called out. "Don't do anything else stupid, okay?"

"I'll try," he answered with a shrug.

I found the McCarty study and sat down at the desk, pushing the button to start the computer. I looked around the room. It wasn't especially large, but like the rest of the house, it possessed a cold bleakness. The walls were covered with shelves of old books, yet I couldn't imagine any of the McCarty's actually reading.

There was a large calendar on the desk with Randall McCarty's scrawling all over it, and several yellow legal pads with notes. Stacks of papers cluttered the surface. This was the only area I'd seen in the entire McCarty house that looked untidy.

I did a few quick online searches to see what I could find out about date rape drugs. I read about Rohypnol, GHB, and Ketamine. The sites all said there wasn't much we could do but wait for it to metabolize out of her body. I ran my hand over the pocket holding my cell phone. I knew they were dead set against it, but everything I read reinforced my belief that Alice really needed to see a doctor.

I could probably get Jasper on my side, and then maybe we could take her to the hospital. I reached for a pen to jot down a few details, but my fingers bumped it and it fell under the desk. As I bent down to retrieve it, I noticed a letter from the La Push Family Clinic next to the overflowing trashcan.

What business would any of the McCarty's have at the free clinic in La Push? Curious, and admittedly nosey, I reached for the page.

"What exactly are you doing, Bella?" asked an accusatory voice.

I snapped my head up so fast that I slammed it into the bottom of the desk. I jerked my hand back as I sat up slowly, rubbing my scalp. I turned to see Victoria McCarty standing in the doorway, arms crossed, looking annoyed.

"So, is it in your DNA to be a snoop?" she asked sharply.

"I was just doing some research on the computer," I said.

"Well, if you're all finished, why don't you just run along now," she said condescendingly.

I turned to the computer and quickly closed out of the open windows so she wouldn't see what I'd been Googling.

"I can take it from here," she snapped, as she stepped forward to hover over me.

"Thanks," I replied.

Rich people sure do know how to roll out the welcome mat.

I walked past her and back into the hall. I could see Edward talking with Emmett downstairs. I decided to go check on Alice and Jasper.

I quietly opened the door and found Alice propped up against some pillows, her eyes now open. She was leaning on her side, facing Jasper. When I entered the room, they turned to me.

"Bella," Alice said, her eyes lit up.

"How are you feeling?" I asked softly.

"I've been better," she answered, chewing her lip. "I'm so sorry they dragged you into this."

"Don't be ridiculous," I said, sitting down at the foot of the bed. "I want to help."

"I'm so sorry. I've made such a mess of things," she said as her eyes filled with tears and she dropped her head.

"You've done nothing wrong," I said. "This is not your fault."

I didn't know what to say, or what to do to console her. Jasper was always better at that. I watched as he wrapped his arm around her. She seemed comforted by his embrace.

"What did you find out, Bella?" he asked.

"These types of drugs break down and leave the body pretty quickly. The amount of time varies depending on how much you ingested. You should try to drink as much water as possible to flush it from your system."

"I just feel so dizzy, and my stomach…" She winced as she ran a hand over her abdomen. "I don't remember anything, Bella," Alice said, her voice cracking. "I don't have any idea what happened, or what could of and I just-"

Her tears welled over and she was suddenly crying and sobbing and her entire body shook. I sat there, feeling awkward. I had no words, and all I could think to do was to wrap my arms around her and hug her, and just let her know that I was there.

Jasper and I both leaned towards Alice, hugging her, and for a moment the three of us were intertwined. It was the closest I'd physically been to Jasper in so long. And as my arms grazed against his, Alice in between us, I suddenly couldn't breathe. My eyes burned as I squeezed them shut, taking a deep breath and removing myself from the embrace.

"We're all here for you," I said, as I rubbed her back. "I'm so glad Jasper found you when he did."

"Me too," she said as she looked up at him. "I just don't know what to do," she whispered.

"You don't have to do anything, except rest and sleep it off. I'm going to find who did this to you," I said. "I promise."

"What's the point?" she said. "I wasn't raped. I don't want Carlisle to find out. What can you do?"

"You can't undo the bad things that happen to you," I said. "But one thing I've learned is that you can make the people responsible pay. You can make them very sorry."

"Let her do her thing," Jasper said to Alice. "This is Bella's area of expertise." He turned to me with a grin.

And it surprised me.

He was usually telling me to let things go, to let the authorities handle it.

But this was different, for all of us.

"You can't let Edward do anything stupid," Alice said. "Promise me that?"

"I'll do what I can," I said. "But you know how he is. I can't make any promises where your brother is concerned."

She nodded in understanding.

"Tell me the last thing you remember from the party," I pressed, gently.

The effects of the drug would have kicked in about 15 minutes after being ingested. If Alice remembered who she was around at that time, it would be a good place to start.

"I'm not really sure," she said. "I'm sorry, I just feel so tired."

"It's okay," I said. "I understand. It was worth a shot –"

"Rosalie," she suddenly interjected. "Rosalie told me she wanted me to leave her boyfriend's party. I do remember that, but I don't really know what else…"

"I'm going to go talk to some people. I'll be back later, though," I said, fuming at the thought of Rosalie being responsible. "You shouldn't be alone."

"I'll stay with her," Jasper assured me.

"Thank you Bella," Alice said wrapping her arms around me again. As she embraced me, my eyes met Jasper and he smiled at me again in that way he does.

I left the guest room and went downstairs to find Edward.

He must have heard me coming down the stairs, because he met me in the foyer.

"Alice is awake," I said. "You should go talk to her. I need to go, I'll be back later."

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"I'm going to La Push to ask around," I answered.

"Then I'm going with you," Edward said. "I'm not going to just stay here. I want to help."

"You've already done enough," I said. "I can get more done on my own. At this point, you being there will probably just do more harm than good."

"How you planning on getting there?" he asked.

Damn it. This is why I should always insist upon driving.

"Give me your keys," I said, reaching out. "Come on, I'm not wasting time going back for the truck. I won't need it for long anyway."

"I really hope you're as good at this as I've been told," he said, as he dropped the keys in my hand.

"Did you make a list for me of everyone that was here?" I asked.

"Yeah, I checked with Rosalie and Emmett and got everyone they could think of, too," he said. "It's not too long. A lot of people cut out after Jacob and those guys showed up."

I looked at the list of about twenty names and wondered which one could have drugged Alice. Jasper saw her around midnight and she was fine, but had been drugged by 1 am. That gave me a pretty clear timeline and a relatively small window in which she could have been dosed.

Unfortunately, it also means that it probably happened while Jacob and his boys were still at the party. I didn't want to believe that Jacob would do something like that, but I couldn't rule out any possibility just yet. The trouble with having an old friend that's the leader of a motorcycle gang is that at the end of the day, he's still the leader of a motorcycle gang. And, as much as I'd like to believe in Jacob's innocence, I had to check it out for myself. Even if it wasn't him, if someone was buying and selling drugs in Forks, the La Push Pack would know about it.

"Just stay here and keep an eye on Alice. Give me your number and I'll call you later," I said, and entered the numbers he gave me into my phone.

I climbed into Edward's car headed to La Push in the brand new Cullen Volvo. With Jacob arrested, Seth was my only ally with the Quileute crowd. I needed to talk to him. I pulled up in front of the Clearwater house and walked up to the front door. I knocked several times, but no one answered. I was about to call Seth, but figured I'd look around back first. I walked down the edge of the property and was looking around when I suddenly heard a familiar voice.

"I've hospitalized people for less than what you're doing right now," Leah Clearwater said dryly.

I turned to see her leaning against the fence, her arms crossed, looking indignant as always. Leah was only a couple years older than me, but she was one of those girls that always seemed older. She was street-smart beyond her years. She was also the only female member of Jacob's crew. She had a bad attitude and a temper to match.

She was nothing like her little brother, Seth.

"I'm just following up on a few things and looking for Seth," I said.

I started walking back towards the car, not in the mood to deal with Leah.

"Whatever you're up to with him, I don't like it," she said.

"I'll keep that in mind," I replied, continuing away from her and taking out my cell to call Seth.

"He's in the garage," she said with sigh, and snidely added, "Might as well save your minutes."

"Thanks," I said, going to look for him.

I rounded the corner and saw Seth sitting on the counter and talking to someone. When I got closer, I realized that 'someone' was Jacob.

"Bella!" Seth called out, jumping from the counter. "I thought you were going to call! I didn't expect to see you." He wore a big grin and was clearly excited about the prospect of working on his dad's case.

"Yeah, I'm actually here for something else," I said hesitantly, turning to Jacob. "I'm surprised to see you here."

"Yeah, well from what I understand, I actually owe this little homecoming surprise to you," he said, shaking his head. "Look at you, driving around in their cars, phoning in favors…I expected more from you Bella."

"It got you outta jail, didn't it?" I replied.

"Sure, sure," Jacob answered.

"Hey Bella, I didn't know they were going to crash the party," Seth said, apologetically. "Leah heard me asking my mom if I could go, and she told the others."

"You had no business going there, Seth," Jacob snapped.

"Oh, but you did?" I shot back at Jacob.

He changed the subject. "What brings you down here, Swan?"

I looked him up and down. His clothes weren't ripped and he didn't have a scratch on him. I'd seen how beat up Edward looked. How could Jacob have been the one he was fighting with and yet look so completely unscathed?

"You look pretty good to have been in a fight," I said.

"Ha, I just tend to heal pretty fast," he answered.

He ran his hand up to his jaw and tilted his head, and then I saw the slight bruise that had formed on the side of his face.

"Cullen's got a pretty good left hook, I'll give him that," he said. "So whatcha come down here for?"

"I want to know what happened," I said evenly.

"Since when are you in the business of following up on rich kid fights?" he asked.

I stared at him, waiting for an answer.

"Whatever. You wanna know what happened? Cullen was pissed cause we crashed his party, so he came at me later. He kept yelling how we'd 'gone too far this time'..." Jacob chuckled. "It was really pretty funny. I don't know what he was expecting. He's one crazy fucker coming at me like that all alone when I got my whole crew with me."

"Wait, you think he came at you because you crashed the party?" I asked, incredulously.

"Well, yeah. Why else would he?" Jacob asked, confused.

"Alice was drugged. His sister was roofied, you ass," I said.

The smugness left Jacob's face and he was suddenly solemn, then his expression turned to one of anger.

"What? Alice – is she okay?" Seth asked.

Jacob spoke before I could answer.

"And he thought – no scratch that – you think I had something to do with that?" he snapped.

"I don't know. I'm asking, did you?" I demanded.

"You're unbelievable, you know that Swan?" he sneered.

"Thank you," I said sarcastically. "Now answer the question. We all know you guys have been known to deal, and we all know how you feel about the Cullens."

"My problems with the Cullens have nothing to do with some little girl," he said.

"I'm just saying with your reputation, you can't blame me for thinking that-"

"My reputation?" he growled. "Oh, well, then I guess what everybody says about you is true too, huh? Be honest, Bella. You think you're this big outsider, but, push comes to shove, you're still one of them. You still think like one of them."

I was furious, but he was right.

I knew better than to believe something like that about Jacob, but I had to check.

"If someone around here wanted to buy Rohypnol, and it didn't come from you, where would they get it?" I asked.

"I got a few ideas," he said smugly. "But what makes you so sure they even got it here? From what I hear that crowd was in Port Angeles just the other day."

"Gotta start somewhere," I answered.

I wasn't getting anywhere with him like this.

"I'm sorry I assumed that you-" I started. "I just had to check, okay?"

I was never good at apologies.

"Look," he said, lowering his voice. "I know some of the guys sell a little herb that they grow down the way. I tend to look the other way on that. But I'm telling you right now, none of my guys deal that other shit."

Jacob walked back to the bike he'd been working on.

"Edward came at you because he thought you drugged his sister," I said. "Emmett assumed that your guys sold more than just weed. So, I'm thinking that whoever drugged Alice might have assumed the same thing."

"Yeah, so?" he snapped.

"Jacob, don't be an ass," Seth interjected. "Has anyone been asking around to buy that kind of thing?"

Jacob looked caught off guard by Seth's interruption. He paused for a moment before letting out an exasperated sigh.

"I might have heard something about Newton asking for that sort of shit," he finally answered.

"Mike Newton?" I asked. I knew he was a douche, but it was still a surprise.

"Hey, you didn't hear that from me, got it?" he said. "Last thing I need is to get a rep for being a narc."

"Thank you. Your secret's safe with me," I said as I turned to leave. "Good to see you, Jake."

"Bells," he called out. I stopped and turned to him. "Be careful around the Cullens. You know they're bad news, right?"

"And see, I thought it was the Swans that were bad news?" I said, shaking my head.

"Bella, wait," Seth said. "I want to help. What can I do to help?"

As I faced Seth, about to answer him, my gaze went over his shoulder and fell upon Jacob. His eyes went from glaring to pleading and I remembered what he asked of me that night at the Camelot.

"I think I got it Seth," I said. "But thanks for the offer."

I turned and walked to the Volvo before Seth had a chance to protest.

So Mike Newton's been trying to buy roofies. If he didn't get them from the La Push crew, there was only one other person in Forks I could think of that he would have gone to, James Fitzpatrick. His family owned a bar across the street from the Camelot and they were known to dabble in everything from drugs to petty theft. But Mike could have just as easily gotten the drugs when they were in Port Angeles. Right now that part didn't matter.

I had to see Mike and make sure he was really the one that did this to Alice. Then I had to decide how I would make him pay.

I debated calling Edward and telling him the news, but I decided it better to follow up on the lead for myself. He was too volatile, and was likely to crucify Mike when he found out. I didn't particularly have a problem with that, but I just wanted to ensure Edward was unleashing his wrath on the appropriate party.

I drove to Mike's house, hoping he would be there. I walked straight up to the door and pounded a few times. Mike answered the door and looked flustered to see me.

"Wha-what are you doing here, Bella?" he stammered.

"I heard you're in the market for roofies and I'm thinking of going into the business, so I thought we could have a little chat," I snapped.

"Dude, you're a freak. I don't know what you're talking about," he said. "I don't have anything to say to you. Get outta here."

"Would you rather talk to Edward Cullen?" I asked. "He can't wait to get his hands on the douche that drugged his little sister." I pulled out my cell phone and started dialing.

"Okay, okay, whoa, whoa, whoa, put that away," he said, swatting at my phone.

"Is it all coming back to you now?" I asked. "Do you suddenly remember trying to rape the new girl?"

"Rape?!" he spat out. "You are seriously whacked, you know that, Swan?"

I'd had it with him. I grabbed him by the shirt and slammed him back into his front door.

"Stop playing games, Newton! Do you really want to see just how whacked I am?" I shouted.

"What the hell's the matter with you?" He looked terrified. Good to know I can still work up a good crazy-eyed look when I want to.

"You were looking for roofies, and then Alice Cullen ends up drugged. Care to offer an explanation for that?" I asked.

"Why does everyone always think I am such a sleaze?" he asked. He looked genuinely confused. "Look, I did buy it, okay, but it wasn't even for me. I wasn't even the one that wanted it."

I tightened my grasp on his shirt and took a deep breath, trying to concentrate. I'd play along with his story for now.

"Okay, so who did you buy it for?" I asked.

"A friend, okay? Just…a friend," he stuttered. "But I guarantee you that this friend wasn't trying to rape anybody."

"Give me a name, Mike," I said.

"No way. You're insane," he said. "I'm calling the police. You better get out of here."

I pulled him out and slammed him back into the door.

"Now Mike, I ask you – do you think the cops are more or less dangerous than me?" I asked coldly.

He was blinking, sweating, and looked desperate.

"Damn, she's going to fucking kill me," he mumbled.

"She?" I asked.

I was going to kill Rosalie Hale.

"Jess," he said finally.

Wait, what?

"Jessica Stanley?" I specified.

"Yeah, she asked me to get her some," he said, defeated. "It's supposed to help soften the crash when you're coming down from-" he stopped talking, as if afraid to further incriminate Jessica.

"Jessica's doing coke now?" I asked with a snort.

"I guess," he admitted. "I don't know. I just know she asked me, and you know, I just thought if I did her a favor, that you know, she might do me a favor."

I pulled my hands back from him.

"You disgust me," I said.

"Yeah well no one cares what you think, Bella," he said.

"So I hear," I said, walking back to the Volvo.

I didn't care if Jessica Stanley was a coke fiend or not. What I did care about was that one person at that party had Rohypnol, and that person just happened to be one of Rosalie's cronies, and had a grudge against Alice.

I drove back to the McCarty house to return the Volvo and report back to Edward what I'd found out. I hadn't worked out yet what exactly to do about Mike and Jessica, but I would come up with something. As Jasper said, this is my area of expertise.

I wasn't prepared to deal with Jessica just yet, but when I pulled up at the McCarty's and saw her sitting out front with Rosalie, my instincts took over. I jumped out of the car, slamming the door shut as I ran up to them.

"What, did you come here to gloat?" I demanded. "Don't you think that's a little sick, even for you?"

"God, what are you bitching about now, Swan?" Rosalie groaned.

"Why don't you ask your little sidekick here," I said, nodding towards Jessica.

"What are you talking about?" Jessica said with a giggle. "You really are mental."

"Tell the truth, Bella," Rosalie said. "You just came here today so you could be around Jasper again, didn't you?"

"He sold you out, Jess," I said, ignoring Rosalie. "You should know how people love to talk in this town. It was only a matter of time before I found out who was buying, and once I found Mike, he cracked like an egg."

They both stared back at me, wordlessly.

"What I really want to know is why? I mean, did you really drug Alice and try to get her raped just to impress Rosalie, or did she put you up to it?" I asked.

Rosalie's jaw dropped and she turned to Jessica.

"What the hell is she talking about?" Rosalie demanded.

"Oh, come on, Rose, you hate her even more than me," Jessica replied. "She needed to be put in her place. I just wanted her to make a fool of herself so everyone would just get over her already."

"You sick bitch," I said. "You're going to be sorry."

"Okay, everyone calm down," Rosalie said. "It was just a joke that went too far. No one was hurt, so no harm, no foul. I don't see any need to upset Edward any more by telling him this."

"No harm no foul?" I repeated incredulously.

"Oh come on, Bella," Rosalie insisted. "Don't be a drama queen. She wasn't raped. She's sleeping it off and she'll be fine."

"You make me sick," I spat out.

"Get over yourself, Swan," Jessica hissed. "That little bitch got what was coming to her. She deserves to be humiliated."

I can't be sure exactly what happened next.

My blood boiled, and I reacted.

I remember my fist making contact with Stanley's face, and I remember hair being pulled. But the next thing I remember clearly was Edward Cullen pulling me off of her, my legs and arms still kicking and swinging as he drug me away.

That Monday at lunch, I sat on the back of my truck next to Seth and Edward.

"We should have brought popcorn," Seth said.

"Yeah, we should have. So, why did he go with her car instead of her locker?" I asked.

"He said that much wouldn't fit in her locker," Seth answered.

"You guys sure this is going to work?" Edward asked. "I still would have rather taken care of this myself."

"Yep, I'm positive," I said, looking at my watch. "Any minute now…"

Then, as if on cue, Mike Newton limped by on his crutches. He took one look at Edward and dropped his head as he stumbled away. I'd made a deal with Edward. He got to take care of Mike, and I got to take care of Jessica.

Honestly, I was surprised Newton was still breathing. But his bruise covered face and broken leg were souvenirs from Edward. As for Jessica, my anonymous tip should have the sheriff's department here any minute now.

Then I saw her. She was being escorted from the school by two deputies and the drug-sniffing German Shepherd. She was groaning and rolling her eyes as she walked to her car.

"This is obviously some type of mistake," she said annoyed.

The dog started barking and jumped up at the trunk of her car. One of the deputies motioned for her to hand over her keys. He opened the trunk and they all gasped.

Jessica's face, still bruised from my assault, looked frozen in disbelief.

"That's not mine!" she shouted. One deputy put her in handcuffs as the other started unloading the large bricks of marijuana.

"Damn!" Edward exclaimed. "Jesus! Where did all that come from?"

"An old friend owed me a favor," I replied.

"Yeah, he said you owe him big now, Bella," Seth said. "He said you really have no idea how much six pounds of weed costs."

"Well, I just wanted to make sure it was enough to be considered distribution," I explained. "Such a shame, just a month after her eighteenth birthday," I added sarcastically. "That means no juvy for Ms. Stanley."

A crowd gathered, and we were no longer alone as we watched Jessica Stanley being shoved into the back of the cruiser and driven away. Rosalie stood with Emmett, her perfect face now marred with stress. The truth had driven a wedge between Rosalie and Emmett, because he may be a psychotic jackass, but apparently even Emmett McCarty has morals.

There are plenty of people that would rather the truth stay hidden. When you're uncovering lies, you're guaranteed to find more deception before you hit the truth. But you have to start somewhere.

There I sat, between Seth Clearwater and Edward Cullen. It was a strange alliance, but maybe it was a good thing. Because when nothing is what it seems, and you're hit with more questions than answers, it helps to have a few allies.


	6. Talk Softly, Stranger

**A/N: I'm really sorry for taking so long to update! It has been a crazy few weeks, apologies for the extended delay.  
Thanks to Kim for helping me with this in so many ways (including the upload!).  
Thanks to Gabi, Bec, Rei, Sheeeri, and Nal for brainstorming help and encouragement.**

We haven't heard from Edward in awhile, so it's time to check in with him. Chapter 7 will be up soon (promise!)

**Edward:**

Some people might say I got carried away with Mike Newton, but I say that scumbag is lucky to still be alive.

It'd been a week since Emmett's party, a week since I gave Newton a beating, and a week since my confrontation with Jacob Black. As it turned out, Forks had been anything but dull. Nobody was more surprised by that than me. This town seemed to be a magnet for bad shit.

"Good morning, Edward!" Alice announced as she hopped down the steps. It was nice to see her almost as chipper as her usual self.

Sometimes having completely self-absorbed, narcissistic parents can be a good thing. Carlisle and Esme never even fucking noticed anything different about my behavior or Alice's. It wasn't easy keeping them in the dark about everything that happened at the party, but it definitely helped that they were so oblivious.

I never told Bella why it was so imperative that Carlisle not find out, but she helped us anyway. That was cool of her, and it seemed like we were becoming friends. Well, at least she wasn't scowling at me as frequently.

"You're awfully cheerful this morning," I said and took a drink of coffee, pushing aside my empty cereal bowl so I could read the newspaper.

"_Yeah_, I am," she said as though it should have been obvious. "This is the first day all week that you're letting me off the leash."

I suppose I'd been being a little over-protective of Alice lately, but I couldn't help it. If I hadn't been so busy getting drunk and being a jackass, I could have done a better job of looking out for her. She'd gotten sick of me following her around everywhere and convinced me to give her some space this weekend. I agreed, but only because Jasper would be with her. If it were up to me, the girl would be babysat by me or Jasper every second for the rest of her life.

Alice was fumbling through the pantry, humming to herself.

"What are you digging for in there?" I inquired.

"I'm looking for the box of Lucky Charms," she said. "I know it's in here somewhere. I just saw it yesterday."

"Sorry," I said, pointing to the empty box in the trash as I took my bowl to the sink. "You snooze, you lose, sis."

"You ass, you know those are my favorite," she groaned.

"Looks like it's oatmeal for you," I said with a shrug. "So where are you going today?"

"We're going to-" She stopped herself, eyeing me suspiciously. "Wait. Why do you want to know? Are you going to follow us?"

"Come on," I said. "I was just asking."

"Well, I want to go shopping," she explained. "I haven't been shopping in _forever_."

"Hmm…Yes, it has been _forever_," I replied.

"You know what I mean," she said. "What are you doing today?"

"I don't know," I answered. I really hadn't given it much thought.

"You should call Bella," she said lightly. "Maybe the two of you could go do something together."

"Yeah, I don't think I'm going to push my luck with her," I said hesitantly.

"She's been through a lot, you know? Besides, I thought you guys had been spending more time together," she said. "You seemed pretty chummy earlier this week."

"Yeah, she's alright. But who knows? It might just be extenuating circumstances that made her tolerate me," I explained.

"Oh stop it. You're being ridiculous," she said. "I know she's a little…rough around the edges. But with all that she's been through, can you blame her? She's a good person, Edward. Better than the skanks you usually pal around with."

"Are you going somewhere with this?" I asked.

"I don't know," she said, pensively. "I see the way you are around her, and I think you like her more than you're admitting. You're very good at lying to yourself, you know? Besides, I like Bella, and I see the way she looks at you sometimes."

"Unless the look you're referring to is a scowl, I have no idea what you're talking about," I said. Seriously, Bella Swan was obviously completely immune to my charm.

"She lost her best friend, her mom…everything," Alice said softly. "And she gave up everything else to stand by her father through it all. I respect that."

"You skip over the part where she and _her_ father accused _our_ father of murder," I added dryly.

"She was supporting her dad, I get that," Alice said defensively. "Besides, we both know Carlisle could have handled everything better. I mean, who _wouldn't_ have thought he was hiding something?"

She was right. That was something I had never been able to understand. Why didn't Carlisle just lawyer up and go along with the investigation? The best I could figure, he was so afraid it would reflect poorly upon him that he panicked. I suppose that's somewhat understandable, but it was still a douche move. The Grayles had been friends of our family for years. The least he could have done was cooperate.

"What's it to you anyway?" I asked.

"You know I like Bella," she replied. "And maybe I just see something that you don't."

I opened my mouth, about to fire off my retort, but was interrupted by a knock at the door.

"That's probably Jasper!" she exclaimed. "Go answer it. Tell him I'll be right there."

"What? Do I look like the fucking help to you?" I asked.

"Ugh, you can be such a shit head, you know that?" she laughed.

"Just go get ready," I said.

I went to the door, and just as Alice expected, it was Jasper. And Emmett. Fucking great.

Things had been awkward, to say the least, between me and Emmett. I still think he's an alright guy, but the problem is that he's usually around his girlfriend, and it took all of my self control to be around that bitch.

There was one reason, and one reason only, why I continued to tolerate Rosalie Hale, and that was her brother. Even though Jasper never spoke up to defend her, she was his sister, and I could never repay Jasper for being there for Alice when I wasn't. So, it seemed like a fair trade to me; he protected my sister, so I wouldn't murder his.

Emmett tried to smooth things over, but that was a useless attempt. It's not the kind of thing that you just get over. It was completely irrelevant to me whether she was the one directly responsible or not. The way she ruled over her pack and encouraged that kind of shit made her just as complicit in my opinion. I know how to hold a grudge, and this was something I wouldn't forgive.

"Hey. Come on in. She's getting ready," I said, letting them in. "How's it going?"

"No complaints here," Jasper replied. "Emmett gave me a ride over since Alice wanted to drive the Porsche. How are you guys doing?"

"Better. All things considered, almost normal," I answered. "Listen, thanks for taking her out today. I appreciate you keeping an eye on her."

"No problem," he said quickly. "It's my pleasure."

"Hey, Jasper!" Alice said, rushing down the stairs. "Sorry to keep you waiting. Ready to go?"

Damn, that was quick. She was obviously eager to get a jump-start on her shopping.

"Yeah, sure," he replied. "See you later, Edward."

"Later. Be safe," I replied with a wave, and turned to face Emmett.

"So, what's happening, man? Damn, it's a great day out there," he announced, slapping my hand.

"What are you doing?" I asked, ignoring his attempts at frivolity.

"I just thought we could hang. You know, chill. It's Saturday, I was thinking maybe we could all hang out tonight – me, you and Rose," he suggested. "We can go to Seattle, hit up some of the good clubs?"

"I don't think so," I replied quickly.

I'd rather impale myself on a rusty nail than spend time with Rosalie.

"Alright, look man. That's what I came here to talk about," he admitted with a sigh. "I know you're pissed at her, and really, I get that. I mean, I am too. But she's not as evil as she'd like people to think. And she really is sorry. We're friends and I don't want to mess that up, but I love her and you just gotta find a way to forgive her."

"I don't 'gotta' do anything. It doesn't work that way," I snapped. "You can't come in here and apologize for her and suddenly expect everything to be okay."

"She didn't know Jessica was gonna do that," he argued. "And Rose never would have done anything that bad, she feels awful about it."

"Oh really? Well that's not what it sounded like to me," I said. "From what I hear, she would have rather covered up the whole thing. Bella said that she even-"

"Bella Swan? Oh great. Here we go again," he groaned. "That bitch is likely to say anything."

"Watch it," I said. "She was there for me and Alice when it mattered most."

Emmett took a deep breath and his shoulders slumped down, defeated.

"Look man, she freaked out when she found out what happened," he said. "She knew it was bad, real bad, and then when Swan started in about wanting to tell you – well, then she just panicked. She knew you'd want to kill her."

"Yeah, sure, whatever," I said dismissively. "Then why'd she act like it was no big deal?"

"C'mon, it's just her way of dealing with it. I'm not saying it's right, it's just…how she is," he said. "She's locked up, shutdown, a morality-free zone most of the time."

He stared at me expectantly, waiting for my response, but I had nothing to say. I hoped he'd said his piece and would leave. It would be nice to still be friends with Emmett, but if that meant he'd constantly be making a pitch for Rosalie, then I was willing to cut my losses with him.

"I'm not gonna lie, I was pissed with her too," he continued. "It's like her wicked little games finally got out of control. But she's really a mess over this. Think about it; her world is crumbling. First Alice comes in and dethrones her, then this. She wants your forgiveness; she wants things to be the way they were."

What a bunch of bullshit. Alice gets attacked and Rosalie tries to make it about her.

"Look Em, that's all really fucking touching, but I don't give a fuck if Rosalie finally decided to grow a conscience," I said. "I'm not going to go after her, and neither is Bella, so be thankful for that and leave it alone."

"What's up with you guys and Swan anyway?" he asked. "Is she the new Cullen pet or some shit?"

"What about the Swan family?" Esme's voice interrupted us. I wondered briefly how much of the conversation she'd overheard, but I was too annoyed to give it much thought.

"Oh, hey Mrs. Cullen. How are you today?" Emmett asked in his best ass-kissing tone.

"What's this about the Swans?" Esme repeated, ignoring him.

"Nothing, I was just telling Emmett here how Bella has been very helpful and a real friend to Alice," I answered.

"Ha!" she laughed once without humor. "Well I'm sure Alice can find more suitable friends than Bella Swan. Edward, I trust you'll help your sister find some friends that can do her some good socially."

"Yeah, Edward, seriously," Emmett agreed.

"Actually, Mother, I happen to be quite fond of Bella, myself," I said.

I'm not even sure where that came from. It was partially true, but partially just my defiant nature wanting to irritate Esme, because really, that was a fucked up thing for her to say. Could she be any more shallow and pretentious?

Her face was suddenly serious, her jaw clenched.

"I think he kinda likes her," Emmett said teasingly to Esme.

That sent her over the edge.

"You most certainly better not!" she shouted. She was furious, as though me liking Bella would be the worst thing in the world. "Absolutely not. I forbid it."

"Okay, hold the phone. First of all, I never said I have a thing for her. Second of all, so what if I do?" I asked.

I really fucking hate it when she tries to tell me what to do.

"It is absolutely, unequivocally, unacceptable!" she hissed.

"Why?" I demanded. "Because she dared to question the great Carlisle Cullen?"

"The entire family is dreadful. Her father tried to send Carlisle to prison," she snapped.

I admit that I like playing the devil's advocate sometimes, but this was more than that. I found myself getting really pissed off at the way we she was talking about Bella. She didn't even know Bella. Besides, who the hell was she to judge anyone?

"Her father – not her," I insisted.

"She's right, man," Emmett interjected. "That whole family is messed up. She's not like us, Edward,"

"Yeah, well, maybe that's a good thing," I said. "Maybe Alice and I are sick of people _like us_."

"Oh please," Esme groaned as she rolled her eyes.

"I'm serious," I said. "Maybe I am bored to fucking death of all the lies and bullshit around here, and maybe I find the change pretty fucking refreshing."

I have no idea why, but for some reason I found myself feeling suddenly protective of Bella, and it was making me irrationally angry to hear them talk shit about her. It really didn't make any sense. Although she intrigued me, I hardly knew her. There were plenty of reasons to dislike her and she had plenty of unlikable qualities.

But still.

She wasn't like the other girls. Hell, she wasn't like anyone I'd ever known. Most of the time, people are pretty easy to figure out. I don't have to be around someone for very long to know exactly what they're thinking, because most people are intellectually transparent – but not Bella Swan. She was entirely _other_.

"Edward, I don't like your tone," Esme said. "I'd like for you to calm down and we can discuss this later."

"There's nothing to discuss," I said. I needed to get away from her, out of that house. I couldn't think straight, and I needed to clear my head. I grabbed my keys from the counter and started walking towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Esme demanded.

"Out," I said, shortly.

"Cool, let's go for a drive," Emmett suggested.

"No, I'll just see you later, man," I said, eager to get away from them both.

I looked back at Esme as she stood there completely livid.

Without further explanation, I left Emmett standing there awkwardly with Esme and headed to the Volvo.

**Bella:**

I was in the middle of my usual weekend shift at Charlie's office, just finishing up some paperwork for him when I heard his key in the door. Surprised, I glanced at the clock. It wasn't even noon.

"You're back early," I said, greeting him with a smile as he walked in. He didn't reply. In fact, he didn't even look at me. He crossed into his office and slammed some papers down on his desk before turning back around.

"What were you thinking, Bella?" he finally spat out.

"I was thinking that you must have finished your errands early," I said slowly.

"Is that how we're gonna play this?" he snapped. He was pacing the ground in front of the reception desk where I was sitting.

"Play what?" I asked. "What happened?"

He stopped pacing and stared at me.

"I'm your father, Bella," he said. "I expect you to be honest with me."

He looked at me as though he were waiting for an answer. But he hadn't asked anything, so I kept quiet. Our stare down seemed to last an eternity, and when he finally spoke again, it was slow and purposeful.

"I know you've been lying to me, and I want it to stop," he said. "I was just down at the station reviewing the report log for the week. I want you to tell me why Edward Cullen showed up on my doorstep a few hours after being in a fight that ended with Jacob Black getting arrested."

Oh shit. That's what this was about. Even with the charges dropped, there would still have been a record of the arrest on the police logs.

"He's my lab partner," I said softly, knowing it was a weak lie, and he'd never believe it.

"Don't feed me that line," he said, exasperated. "You were with him all day."

"It was just a misunderstanding," I offered. It was technically true. "They're both fine. It's really no big deal."

"It sure as hell is a big deal. It's a huge deal," he snapped, nearly shouting. "I want you to stay away from that family. That boy is just as bad as his father."

He took a few steps away from me and took a deep breath, pausing before he continued.

"I mean it," he said, a veil of calmness wrapped around his still irritated voice. "This ends now. You are to stay away from the Cullens. Understand?"

I couldn't believe his audacity. He was still lying to me, or at the very least holding out on me.

"No," I answered. "I really don't. Why is it okay for you to be sneaking around town with Esme Cullen, but I can't even spend an afternoon with Edward Cullen without you freaking out?"

"It's not the same," he sighed.

"I hate this," I said. "We're always fighting. It doesn't have to be like this."

"I don't like this either, Bells," he said. "But I want some answers. I want to know what you were doing with him all day."

"A project," I replied. He wasn't giving me any answers, so I'd be damned if I was going to give him any.

"Damn it, Bella!" he shouted. "Stop acting so snotty. What makes you think you have the right to lie to me like this?"

"What are you talking about, 'have the right'?" I asked, raising my voice to match his. "I tell you what you need to know. It's the same way you treat me."

His lies and omissions were widening the gap between us. Our family was crumbling apart, and I seemed to be the only one that even cared. My eyes burned with anger and my tears welled. I was on the brink of crying, but was too furious to give in.

"I am the adult here, Bella," he insisted. "What I do, I do to protect you."

"I don't want you to protect me," I said, stepping out from behind the desk and closing the distance between us. "I can take care of myself."

"I'm trying to help you," he said.

"You want to help me?" I asked. "Then find mom, make us a family again. Do you even care if she ever comes back?"

"This isn't about your mother," he said. "This is about you lying to me."

"I guess I'm just following your lead, _Dad_," I shot back.

"Watch your mouth," he replied.

"You can find anybody!" I shouted, the tears now spilling down my cheeks. "You're an investigator. If she were a criminal, you'd make a couple grand tracking her down and you'd have her back in a week."

"Well, maybe I don't care to find her," he retorted. "Have you ever considered that?"

His cold response left me speechless and infuriated. I couldn't believe he'd just said that. I didn't know if that statement was true, or if it was designed to hurt me, but I wasn't waiting around to find out.

I grabbed my bag and headed for the door.

"Bella," he sighed. "Wait…"

But I ignored him and rushed down the stairs eager to get the hell out of there and as far from this hell-hole as possible. Away from Charlie's judgmental stare, my tears flowed down my face. My emotions had boiled over, and I hated how weak that made me feel. I felt vulnerable in ways I'd promised myself I'd never be again.

I was almost to my truck when I heard my name.

"Bella, wait up!" I knew the voice immediately.

Edward Cullen. Of all the people, of all the times…Why him? Why now?

"What's wrong?" he asked. "Are you okay?"

I froze in place with one hand on the door handle of my truck. I knew in that moment that I could pretend like didn't hear him and climb into my truck and leave.

But for some reason, I didn't. I was drawn to Edward, and I didn't have the strength to stay away from him anymore.

And I've wondered since then how different things would be now if I had just gotten into my truck and never looked back. But, I'll never know.

**A/N: I really appreciate reviews and feedback. I try to reply when there are questions, but I'm a little behind. Thanks for reading!**


	7. Touch of Cullen

**Thanks to Kim for beta-ing and input, and thanks to Becpire and [sad5] for the continuing support and encouragement, you guys are amazing.**

**I also want to give a shout out to the amazing and talented Emz&Shez and their kickass comics!  
****You can find them on LJ at emzshezcomics[dot]livejournal[dot]com and Twitter[dot]com/EmzShezComics -- Check them out!!!  
**

**Chapter 8 will be coming soon, thanks for reading!**

**Chapter 7: Touch of Cullen**

**Edward POV**

I was on the road and approaching the edge of town when I realized that in my haste to get out of the house, I'd left without my cigarettes.

Great. That's what I get for storming off like a petulant child. I turned the car around and looped back towards town so I could stop to pick up some more. A few minutes later I was back in the heart of Forks driving down this shitty town's sorry excuse for a downtown area and looking for an empty parking spot. Once I found one, I pulled in and crossed the street to the convenience store.

I had my hand on the door and was about to go in when something caught my eye to my left. You know those people who can predict when change is coming in their life? I'm not one of them. Change has a way of just walking up and punching me in the face. Right there, just down the block from me was none other than Bella fucking Swan. I swear it was like the girl was haunting me, creeping into every crevice of my mind and turning up wherever I looked.

I stood there holding the door handle, and considered my options. Any other day I probably would have just thrown her a nod and a grin and been on my way. Hell, I wouldn't even have been standing there at that moment if Esme hadn't started in about her. Her interrogation had inadvertently led me straight to Bella.

Everything had been so messed up lately. I felt a sense of loyalty to her because of Alice, and I also felt this strange urge to protect and defend her. But it was more than all of that. I was drawn to her in ways I didn't understand.

So there I was, probably looking dumbfounded and like a chump, with one hand still on the door to the store, and my eyes glued on her. She hadn't seen me yet, and I hoped she wouldn't do that damn scowl when she did. But then I saw her face a little more clearly, and I realized that something was off. She still looked as pissed off as always, but there was something else there too – her eyes were puffy and rimmed in red. Drops of moisture lined her cheeks.

She was crying. Bella Swan was crying.

She'd surprised me yet again. And that damn feeling returned. It was protective, irrational.

Before I knew it, my hand was off the door and I was down the sidewalk towards her. She reached into her bag and drew out her keys and then I saw her hideous red truck and realized that she was about to leave.

"Bella, wait up," I called out.

Her hand was quickly at her face, furiously wiping the tears from her eyes. She didn't want me to know that she was crying.

"What's wrong?" I asked. "Are you okay?"

"Hey, Edward. Yeah, I'm fine. I just need to go-"

Her voice cracked and I spoke up before she had a chance to finish her lie.

"Stop lying," I said. "You know, you don't have to act like such a hard-ass all the time."

She let out a half-hearted laugh.

"Seriously, are you alright?" I pressed. "You want to talk?"

"No," she said meekly. Her voice filled with defeat and I wasn't sure if it was an answer to one or both questions.

I didn't know what the hell I was supposed to say or do, so like the jackass I am, I just stood there. But she just stood there, too.

After a moment, she looked up at me, her eyes still damp.

"We had an argument," she said. Her voice was fragile and soft. I didn't know who she was talking about, so I said nothing and just listened. "I was at Charlie's office," she continued, pointing back down the block. I looked up, following her hand, and saw the second floor window that read "Swan Investigations."

"What happened?" I asked.

She stared up at me, and I felt like her eyes were searching me for something, but I didn't know what.

"I want to find my mom," she said, almost in a whisper. "I want _him_ to find her, but he won't."

Her sudden honesty with me was disarming. As I watched a single tear escape and make its way down her cheek, I wanted to reach out to her. I felt compelled to do something, to comfort her in some way, but I felt awkward and self-conscious. I clumsily brushed her hair out of her face and she seemed to tense, so I pulled my hand back.

Feeling this unsure and nervous was entirely foreign to me. I didn't know why she had this effect on me, and again I found myself dying to know what she was thinking. Had I crossed a line? Bella didn't seem to be one to hide her feelings, so if she had a problem with me, surely she'd let me know. My eyes wandered back to her face as I scoured my brain for the right words to say.

"Maybe he can't track her down," I suggested.

"It's what he does. He finds people," she said. "But he hasn't even tried, and he won't tell me why."

"Maybe he has a good reason," I said hesitantly. Her eyes tightened and she looked at me expectantly. "Maybe he knows more about why she left him and-"

"She left me too," she snapped.

"I know," I said quickly. Damn it. Why did everything I say around her come out wrong? "I just meant that he must have his reasons. He probably thinks he's doing what's best for you."

"That shouldn't involve lying to me," she insisted. "You don't get it. _Everything_ has been ripped away from me, and I need something to hold on to. I thought it was him. He was supposed to be my rock, the one thing I could count on no matter what. But now I'm realizing he's just like everyone else. He lies."

"He might've lied to you, but he's still there for you, Bella," I said. "He's the one that stayed. It sounds to me like you might be taking your anger out on the wrong parent."

"We've always been there for each other, but now, when it matters most, he won't help me," she said. "But it's not just that. He still won't tell me the truth."

"What won't he tell you the truth about?" I asked.

"You wouldn't understand," she said coldly, closing herself off again.

"Try me," I said, matching her tone.

"It's complicated," she snapped.

"I'm sure I can keep up," I snapped back.

She stared up at me for a moment and it made me crazy that I had absolutely no clue what she was thinking. When she finally spoke again, I pathetically hung on every word.

"He wants me to stay away from the case, but I won't…I haven't," she replied.

"The case?" I asked.

"Tanya's case," she clarified, annoyed. "He told me to drop it, but _he_ didn't. He's still investigating, but he won't tell me what he knows."

"Maybe he's right," I said. "Why not let the professionals handle it?"

"This case and the investigation define my very existence," she said. "And she was my best friend."

"I'm just saying that maybe he has a point," I explained.

"I think if I knew more about the case and the evidence, - I - I just need to know the truth," she said. "I don't expect you to understand this; I'm sure Carlisle keeps you very sheltered."

"Why do you do that? Why are you always turning things around and taking a shot at me?" I asked, irritated. Couldn't she see that I was trying to help?

"Given my experiences with your family, can you blame me for not trusting you?" she asked snidely.

"I would think you of all people would know what it's like to be judged for your father's reputation and not for yourself," I said. "I know you've been through a lot, but you're not the only one."

She stared at me again, and her silence was infuriatingly frustrating.

"You know, you never say or do what I expect," she finally said.

"Neither do you," I admitted.

"I'm sorry," she sighed. Again, not what I anticipated. But then she followed it up with another accusation. "Your parents are complicit in this. I may not be able to prove it, and I may not know exactly how yet, but I _will_ find out."

"My parents?" I asked. "How do you know you aren't just following your father's misguided attempts down a dead end road?"

"Believe me, I've questioned the validity of his theories, but there are too many questions," she explained. "Why didn't Carlisle call the police right away? Why was Tanya at your house? Why is Esme secretly meeting with Charlie to discuss some case?"

"Esme? What?" I asked.

"Yeah," she said, nodding. "I don't know what it's really about, he says it's not about this case, but I don't know. It just doesn't add up, and he was pretty upset that I found out about it."

Why the hell was Esme meeting with Charlie Swan? That peaked my curiosity, especially after her impassioned rant about how dreadful the Swan's were. What was she hiding? It made me wonder what her phobic-like aversion to me spending time with Bella was really about.

"He was pretty upset when he found out we've been spending time together," she admitted.

"Oh yeah?" I asked. "Same here."

"I can imagine," she said. "I bet they freaked."

"Esme did, and I'm sure Carlisle will soon," I answered.

"I just want answers, you know?" she continued. "Tanya deserved better than this."

"Maybe I can help," I blurted out, unsure how, or even if, I really could.

She stared at me suspiciously.

"How? What are you going to do?" she asked. They were valid questions.

"I have access you could never get," I said. "That's gotta be worth something."

"Yeah," she said, seemingly unconvinced. "Why would you do that? Why would you help me?"

"Because you're right, Tanya deserved better than to end up just some small town scandal," I said. "And maybe I want to know the truth, too."

"I thought you believed the party line that wrapped up the whole thing: Harry Clearwater was a deranged stalker, Charlie Swan was an inept cop, end of story?" she asked.

"Maybe I'm not so sure what I believe anymore," I answered. And I really wasn't.

Though I'd never been one to involve myself in these sort of things, I couldn't deny that things didn't add up. But for some reason her family and mine seemed tangled up in this mess together. I didn't know how to find the truth, or if we ever would. But I decided right then and there I wanted to try. Bella Swan had a way of making me see things differently.

A few moments passed with us just standing there, together, and it was nice.

I wondered if things were changing between us. Some might say she's a bitch, but I say she's complicated. And for someone that gets bored easily, complicated is good.

Her eyes were now dry, but she was still somber. As I watched her, leaned back against her truck, something suddenly caught my eye. On a chain around her neck was a ring. It looked as though she normally kept it tucked under her shirt, but it had made its way out, and the sunlight sparkled off of the ring.

I recognized that ring.

"That was Tanya's," I said.

As I reached out and touched the ring, my fingers grazed against her skin.

"No." She gasped as she pulled away from me.

I instantly regretted my action. It wasn't like I was trying to cop a feel or something, but my touch seemed to upset her, or maybe it was my mention of the ring. In either case, I wished I hadn't done it.

"I mean, it _was_," she stammered. "She gave it to me."

"Look, I'm sorry," I said. "I didn't mean to upset you or anything."

"It's fine," she said quickly. "I just – I need to go."

"Bella, don't go," I said. "I didn't mean –"

"Really, it's fine," she snapped, as she opened the door to her truck.

It was like she couldn't get out of there fast enough.

She started the engine and looked back at me.

"I'm sorry," she said with a sigh.

I was frozen in place as I watched her drive away.

Why was I always fucking things up?

**Bella POV **

Why did I always fuck things up?

I felt like I was coming unglued. Nothing made sense, and it was like everything in the world had been flipped upside down. I don't know why I freaked, I just did. Maybe it was his unexpected touch, or maybe it was the reminder of Tanya. But either way, it hit me hard and I knew I needed to get out of there, and away from Edward Cullen. He brought too many vulnerabilities to the surface. As I drove away from him, he looked hurt, his face full of concern.

I kept my windows down as I got on the highway, needing to feel the fresh air slap against my face. With a thousand thoughts rushing through my mind, but not a single one coherent, I just kept driving. Time passed as I drove and drove, thinking of everything and nothing at the same time, and I suddenly realized I'd driven myself to La Push.

Once there, I knew exactly who I wanted to see. As I hopped out of my truck and walked toward his garage, I hoped to find the old version of Jacob that was my trusted friend, and not his snarky replacement. It had been a long time since we'd been really close, but I discovered that now, in my vulnerable state, he was the one person I needed to see. He was my oldest friend. Before Jasper and even Tanya, there was Jacob.

"What's the matter? You need help with another case, Nancy Drew?" Jacob's voice called out from behind me.

I jumped, startled, not expecting him to be right there. I turned towards him, and hoped he was alone. I didn't need harsh and judgmental stares from Leah or Paul or the rest of the guys.

"Hey, Jake," I said softly.

"What do ya need, Bella?" he snapped. Then his eyes met mine, and his face softened, his tone changed. "You okay? What's wrong?"

"Just one of those days, you know?" I said, avoiding eye contact.

"Sure, sure," he said nodding. "Listen, I was just heading back here to do some work on Quil's bike. You can tag along if you want."

I followed him to his garage, grateful that he always seemed to know when to push and when to just be there.

"It's been a long time since you hung out here," he said nonchalantly, as he pulled some tools out of the cabinet.

"Yeah, it has," I agreed. "I used to be here almost every day."

"A million years ago," he said.

"Back when Charlie and Billy and Harry used to get together to watch the games," I added as I hopped up to sit on top of the workbench.

"Remember Harry's fish-fry?" he asked.

"How could I forget?" I laughed.

A rare smile spread across his face as he shook his head at the memory, and I remembered how easy it used to be to be around him. Jacob, like his father Billy, exuded warmth. In truth, I really missed the cookouts and weekend gatherings our families used to have.

"We had some good times…back then," he said. "Hasn't been like that in a long time though."

He looked over at me, and I could tell he was searching my face for answers, wondering what I was doing there.

"What happened to us, Jake?" I asked, breaking the moment of silence. "We used to be friends."

"I'm still your friend, Bella," he replied. "You just…changed."

"Yeah, well, things changed," I snapped defensively. How could I have _not_ changed, given all that happened?

"Nah, I mean before that," he clarified. "You were so willing to give up what you had to try and be like them. But we're not like them Bells, never will be. Might as well be a different species. First chance you got, you turned your back on all of us and joined the other side."

"Jesus, Jake," I said. "Do you have to be so melodramatic? You make it sound like I sided with your sworn enemies."

"Might as well have," he said under his breath, turning away from me.

"It wasn't like that," I said. "They weren't all bad. Tanya and Jasper, they were different. Just like Alice and Edward are different."

"Shoulda known Cullen would've charmed you," he said disapprovingly.

"So that's why you started hating me?" I asked, ignoring the dig at Edward.

"I could never hate you, B," he said, turning back to face me.

"Ha! Well, I guess you just have a funny way of showing your affection," I said.

"Don't turn this around on me," he said. "You're the one that started thinking you were better than us – better than me."

"I'm not better than you," I said.

"I know," he shot back.

"This was a mistake," I groaned as I jumped down from the counter.

"Mistakes run in your family, huh?" he retorted.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" I asked.

I couldn't believe he just said that to me.

"Oh come on, you know exactly what that means," he continued. "If your pops hadn't screwed up the investigation, the Clearwater family wouldn't have been ripped apart and Harry wouldn't be sitting on death row."

"Charlie didn't screw up anything!" I shouted. "And if you want to blame someone for screwing up the Clearwater family, then blame Harry. He's the one that confessed."

"You can spin it however you want," he said. "It doesn't change the fact that Charlie dropped the ball."

"You're deluded if you really think that," I said.

"Wake up, Bella!" he shouted. "Everyone around here thinks that."

"I didn't come here to fight with you, Jacob," I said, swallowing down all the points I wanted to argue.

"Why _did_ you come here?" he demanded.

"I wanted to talk to you," I admitted.

"About what?" he asked.

"Just forget it," I said, taking a step towards the door.

"Wait," he called out with a sigh. "Come on, you can't just come back here and expect us to be chummy like old times. A lot of shit has happened. But," he paused. "Why did you want to talk to me?"

"Because you're like me," I said. "You think like me."

He let out a surprised laugh. "Oh yeah? And how am I like you?"

"Cynical, untrusting," I replied.

"You say it like it's a _bad_ thing," he said, amused.

He put down the wrench he was holding and wiped the grease from his hands. I looked over at him and wondered if he, or anyone for that matter, could give me the answers I wanted. I paused for a few moments and he waited patiently until I finally spoke.

"Do you ever think maybe things could change?" I asked.

"Things are always changing," he said.

I didn't know how to say what I really wanted to ask him. Jacob was just as guarded as me, so he was the only one that could possibly understand. I'd managed to push people away so effectively that simple human contact felt foreign to me.

The truth was that Edward barely touched me, and it shouldn't have been a big deal, but for some reason it was to me, and that got me thinking. I'd closed myself off so much that I was becoming a zombie, and I suddenly wasn't sure if that was what I wanted.

"I don't know what I'm trying to say," I admitted. "It's just that lately, I've been wondering if things can ever be normal again – if _I_ can ever be normal again."

"I don't recall you ever being normal," he joked.

"You know what I mean," I laughed.

"I do," he said, nodding. "But you know, it's never too late to start over."

"What do I have to lose, right? No friends, no reputation. Sometimes I just wish everything would go back to how it was," I said.

"You gotta stop looking back at the way things were," he said. "It's never gonna be like that again. You also gotta stop glorifying the past. Things weren't perfect back then either, you know?"

"I know that," I said. "And Jake, what you said earlier, I never meant to turn my back on you. It really wasn't like that."

"I know, but it kinda _was_ like that," he insisted.

"Jake-" I started.

"Forget it," he said, holding up his hand. "It doesn't matter anymore. So Cullen's got you questioning yourself, huh?"

"What? No, I-" I stammered. "What makes you think this is about him?"

"Pfft, please," he said. "It's obvious. You practically reek of him. Don't worry about it. You'll figure it out. And by the way, you do have friends Bella, just maybe not the same friends you had a year ago."

"Thanks, Jacob," I said.

"So you gonna tell me what happened with him?" he asked.

"Nope," I said. "But I will tell you that he just offered to help me with the case."

He exhaled loudly and gave me a disappointed look that I didn't really understand.

"There's no happy ending to that story, Bella," he said carefully. "Going over it again and again isn't gonna change the tragedy."

"It won't change it, but maybe I can get some answers that satisfy me," I said.

"Just be careful," he said.

"Always am," I replied. "Thanks for being here. I owe ya one."

"I'm pretty sure you owe me more than one," he said.

"Do I?" I asked jokingly. "That's not how I remember it."

"Sure, sure," he said, grinning as he waved.

"See you around," I said.

I walked back to my truck and pulled out of Jacob and Billy's driveway. I'd only made it a few houses down the street when I realized I didn't actually have any place to go. I definitely didn't want to see Charlie yet, so I couldn't go home or to the office.

Glancing at my phone, I saw I had several missed calls and a few new voicemails. They were from Edward. I played the first message.

"Bella, it's Edward. Listen, I'm really sorry. I'm not sure what happened, but whatever I did, I just want to say I'm sorry. I didn't mean to screw things up. Just, please call me or something, okay?"

I deleted the message and snapped my phone shut. I felt bad that he thought he'd done something wrong, when really I was the one who screwed up. I was too humiliated to talk to him just yet, but I would later. Because, Jacob was right. Things are always changing. We either adapt with them or get left behind. And if there was one thing I was sure of now, I was ready for change.


	8. The Desperate Moment

**The Fallen Swan, Chapter 8: The Desperate Moment**

As I pondered my next move, I knew I wanted to do something proactive, so I decided to go see Seth and sort through some of his father's things looking for leads. He'd been trying to get me to do that all week, but sitting in the Clearwater house rummaging through Harry's personal belongings wasn't something I was eager to do. It was unlikely I'd find anything tangible, but it's essential to follow up on every lead, because sometimes the important things turn up when you least expect them.

I briefly considered calling first, but decided to just drop by since I was so close. Seth would be thrilled to be doing something to work on his dad's case.

I pulled in the driveway and walked up the short distance to their house. It was a modest home, but always felt cozy. Harry used to work as a baggage handler for Randall McCarty's airline. Like most of the employees at Olympic Air, he made pretty good money and had nice benefits, but I wondered how the Clearwaters were making ends meet now.

I didn't have to knock on the door because Seth flung it open as soon as I stepped foot on the front porch. He must have heard the distinct rumble of my truck coming down the street.

"Bella!" he exclaimed. "What's up?"

"I was just in the area and decided to drop by," I said. "I thought maybe we could go through some things, if you're up for it?"

"Seriously? Yes, of course," he said quickly, opening the door to let me in.

"Your mom around?" I asked cautiously, as I stepped into their house.

"Nope, she's gone all weekend actually," he said. "She's visiting some family in Oregon. Leah's out for the afternoon, too," he added.

"Perfect," I said.

"Go ahead and sit down," he said, motioning towards a chair in the living room. "I've been going through some things on my own, and I have a few boxes and some paperwork that I thought we could go over together. I mean, you know more specifically what sort of things we're looking for."

"Sounds like a plan," I agreed. I was impressed with the way he'd taken the lead on this.

Seth retrieved the boxes and spread them out between us. There was a shoebox full of Harry's various personal items, and a larger box full of other assorted belongings.

"So how are things going with the Cullens?" Seth asked.

"Um, fine," I said, caught off-guard by his inquiry.

"They're pretty cool, you know?" he said.

Edward and Seth seemed to have been building a bond, which was beyond peculiar. Even when Edward made the Clearwater connection and realized who Seth's father was, it never seemed to make a difference. I didn't understand it, but the two seemed to have become friends.

"They're alright," I said.

"I like them," he said.

"Are you ready to get started?" I asked, changing the subject.

"Absolutely," he agreed.

For the next few hours, we sorted through everything from old yearbooks to sports memorabilia, but nothing seemed unusual or especially interesting. In truth, I wasn't certain what we were looking for either. I suppose I wanted to better understand Harry Clearwater. I thought maybe if I knew more about who he was, then maybe I could understand how he fit into the larger puzzle, and why he would confess to the awful murder.

"Nothing, huh?" Seth asked, disappointed.

"I don't think so," I admitted. "But it's hard to say for sure. You mentioned some paper work?"

"Yeah," he said. "It's mainly old bills and statements, but I thought you might want to take a look at it anyway."

He paused awkwardly and didn't set the papers down.

"Hey, there's something else I kind of wanted to talk to you about," he finally said.

"Okay," I said.

"Well," he hesitated. "I just feel like you should know."

"Okay," I said. "Spit it out, what's up?"

"It's probably nothing," he started. "But it seems like Jasper and Alice are spending a lot of time together. They've been sitting with each other at lunch-"

"At _school_?" I asked.

"Yeah," he answered hesitantly.

"At _lunchtime_?" I couldn't help but laugh.

"I'm just telling you this because it looked like it was something, like they were _connecting_, you know?" he said.

"I know, Seth," I said. "It's fine. Jasper's a good guy. I think it's great that he and Alice are friends."

"Okay," he said, unconvinced.

"You ready to go over those papers now?" I asked.

"Here you go," he said, laying them on the table in front of me.

"Thanks for doing this," he said. "After all the media attention, and then when Dad confessed – I don't know, I guess everyone was so eager to close the case that no one bothered looking into all of this. He's not a murderer, Bella. I _know_ it. And I don't know why he would say he was. He must have had a good reason. I just can't understand it."

"I know, Seth. I don't understand either," I said. "But we will figure it out."

"I hope so," he said.

"We will. Now let's see what we have here," I said. I flipped through the first few pages of old credit card statements and pay stubs, and then saw something more interesting. "Here we go."

"What?" he asked.

"It looks like some of his old cell phone bills are in here," I said. "Charlie always says you can learn a lot about a person by who they're talking to, when, and for how long."

"There's a few here," he said. "They're all from about a year ago, obviously."

"And the police never went over these," I said. "Unbelievable."

"A lot of people got promotions for solving this case," he said.

I shook my head in disbelief at the lazy law in this town.

"Do you recognize these numbers?" I asked, pulling one off the stack and passing it to him.

"Yeah," he nodded. "Let's see, that's our home line, Leah's cell, Mom's cell, the Black's house, work, not sure about this one though."

He pointed out a number at the bottom of the page. It was an outgoing call at 1 am on a Tuesday. I flipped the page and continued through the list and saw the number showed up again and again, usually at late hours.

"I can look up the number," I said. "Let's see if it shows up on any of the other statements." I reached for another at the same time as Seth and as he pulled the page, it sliced the tip of my finger. I snatched my finger back quickly from the sting of the paper cut, but it already drew blood.

"Oh man," he said. "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault," I said. "No biggie - a band-aid and I'll be fine."

"Sure," he said. We both stood up at the same time. "There should be some in the medicine cabinet."

"Thanks," I said as I headed down the hall.

I stepped into the bathroom and opened the cabinet. It was overcrowded, so I peered around trying to spot the band-aids without moving everything. As I reached to pull them out, I accidentally knocked a few bottles off the shelf in the process. They smacked loudly into the sink and onto the ground. Typical Bella, smooth as always.

"You okay?" Seth called out.

"Yeah, sorry," I answered.

I fumbled to retrieve the bottle of aspirin, and a couple of prescription bottles and put them back in their places. I ran some cold water over the tip of my finger, then dried it and applied the band-aid.

Just as I walked back down the hall and towards the living room, I saw the front door swing open and Leah come flying in.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she shouted.

"Leah," Seth said. "Back off."

"Shut up, Seth," she said. "I'll deal with you later."

"Leah, I'm just trying to help," I said. "But I'll go now."

"No, Bella," Seth said. "Don't go. We're not finished."

"Oh, you most definitely are finished," Leah hissed. "Now get the hell out of my house."

I walked over to where I'd been sitting and picked up my bag, taking one last glance at the cell phone bill we'd been looking at. Knowing I might not get another chance to see it if Leah had her way, I made a quick mental note of the number.

"Leah, calm down. Bella's my friend." Seth said.

"I told you to stay the hell away from my family," Leah said to me, ignoring Seth. "Then I come home to find you lurking around my house, going through my father's things. What the hell is the matter with you people? Don't you think you and your dad have done enough damage to my family?"

"Leah, I want to find out the truth just as much as you do," I said. "And Charlie and I never meant to hurt your family."

"_Really_? Wow, then just imagine how much damage you could do if you did try?" she shot back.

"We're working on this case, whether you like it or not," Seth said firmly.

"You sure as shit are not! And you," she said, turning to me, "stay away from my family. Do you hear me?"

"I hear you," I said. "But I really don't care. I'm working this investigation, and if Seth wants to help me that's his business."

In a single motion, she crossed the room and was inches away from me.

"You think you're real tough around those little rich bitches, don't you?" she asked. "Keep your skanky ass away from my brother, and out of my house."

"I'm sorry, what was that? I don't speak 'bitch'," I said.

Then several things happened very quickly. Her fist made contact with my face, and Seth lunged at her. A split second later, I could taste my own blood as I watched Seth restrain his still struggling sister. He must have been stronger than I expected, because Leah was tough and scrappy, but he seemed to hold her back effortlessly.

I knew it was wrong to provoke her. She wasn't like Rosalie or Jessica, after all. Leah wasn't all talk and bitch-schemes. She was hardcore, a fighter. But she pissed me off and I just couldn't help myself.

"Let go of me!" she yelled. Seth was leaning back against the wall on the other side of the room with Leah's back pulled up to him, his arms holding hers back despite her best efforts to break free.

"You okay, Bella?" Seth asked, ignoring her.

"I'm fine," I said, wiping the blood from my lip and rising to my feet.

"Sorry, but I guess you should go for now," he said.

"Yeah, I was planning on it," I said, grabbing my bag again and heading towards the door.

Things with Leah weren't close to over yet, but that was a problem I'd have to deal with on another day. I drove away, wiping the blood from my face. I took out my cell so I could track down the location of the number from the bill. I noticed I'd missed more calls from Edward. I would talk to him, but I just wasn't ready yet.

I pulled up a browser window on my phone and went to a reverse look-up site and entered the number in question. There wasn't a name associated with the number, but I was able to find the address where it was registered. I had a vague idea of the area, so I decided to go there and see it for myself.

Within a few minutes, I found the address. It was on a commercial block of small businesses and restaurants, though that particular address had no sign out front. It was across the street from the Rambling Rose, one of the Fitzpatrick family's bars, and a few blocks down from the Camelot Motel. The Fitzpatrick's were a family of miscreants that Charlie had arrested more times than I could count.

It was a shady area, and not at all the type of place I should have been hanging around by myself. But I was never one to back down easily, so I decided to snoop around and see if I could find out anything. I parked in a small lot next to the building, and got out to walk around. The loud music playing in the bar echoed through the alley and spilled into the parking lot.

Who would Harry Clearwater be talking to down here? I walked by the address and checked the buzzer for names, but there was nothing. I finished the block and started heading back to my truck. I caught a glimpse of my reflection in a window and remembered I had blood smeared on my face. My lip was swollen. I'd have to get cleaned up before going home so Charlie wouldn't freak.

I got back to my truck and played the rest of the messages from Edward. I listened to his concerned messages, one after the other. I decided I should call him, if for nothing else, so that he would stop worrying he'd done something wrong. I punched in his number and took a deep breath.

**Edward POV**

I was almost back to Forks. I'd taken an extended drive to clear my mind. I'd called Bella more times than I could count, and I was going crazy trying to figure out what went wrong. I kept replaying it in my mind, and more than anything, I just wanted to be around her again. I couldn't figure her out and the longer I was away from her, the more anxious I became.

I still had my phone in my hand, contemplating if enough time had passed that I could call her again without seeming creepy, when it suddenly rang. I saw her name on the caller ID and I nearly veered off the road trying to answer it quickly.

"Bella?" I asked anxiously. Way to keep cool, Cullen.

"Hi, Edward," she answered. "I'm sorry I didn't call you sooner."

"No, listen, I'm sorry if I upset you, or if I said or did anything out of line," I said quickly. "I know I come off like a dick sometimes, but whatever I did, it was not intentional."

"You don't have to apologize," she said. "Let's just drop it, okay? Bygones?" She sounded embarrassed.

"Are you sure you're okay?" I asked. "Where are you? I hear music."

"I'm totally fine," she said. "I'm down by the Rambling Rose, actually - long story."

"That's a hell of an area - what are you doing over there? It's almost dark," I said.

"Like I said, long story," she repeated.

"I could come meet you," I offered, accelerating. I didn't know what she was up to, but the way trouble seemed to follow that girl around, she shouldn't be hanging out in a neighborhood like that alone.

"No, really. I'm fine," she said with a nervous laugh.

"Okay, if you're sure," I said, not mentioning that I was already on my way to her. "Hey, I was thinking we should hang out sometime, maybe--"

"Let's talk about this some other time, I–" she started.

"There's a concert in Seattle in a couple of weeks that Alice wants to go to," I said, ignoring her attempt to brush me off. "Jasper might go too. You should come – it'll be a whole group of us."

"Um, maybe," she said hesitantly. "Are Rosalie and Emmett going?"

"_Hell,_ no," I replied, as I took the Forks' exit off the highway.

"Okay, good," she laughed. "I'll think about it, okay?"

"Fair enough," I agreed. "So, how are things with your dad? Have you talked to him since this morning?"

"No. And to be honest, I'm in no rush to, either," she said.

"I hear ya," I said. "So, what exactly are you doing right now? Do you want to grab some dinner?"

"Thanks, but I don't think that's a good-" she gasped and I heard a thud.

"Bella? You okay? What happened?" I asked.

I could barely hear her voice. She must have dropped the phone. Though muffled, I could make out two voices, hers and a guy. There was something in Bella's voice that I'd never heard before – fear.

"Bella?" I called out again. I tried to listen, but I couldn't make out what was being said. The lack of information mixed with concern, and incensed me.

Accelerating faster, I raced through the streets of Forks. When I spotted the sign for the Camelot Motel, I knew I was close. I saw the Rambling Rose at the end of the block, and scanned the area for her truck.

I finally saw the ridiculously hideous truck, but she wasn't with it. I screeched to a halt, not bothering to park, and jumped out of the car. I ran up to the truck and looked inside, and saw her phone laying on the floor and her bag in the passenger seat. I knew she wouldn't have intentionally left it like this.

I scanned the parking lot looking for her and began to maneuver between the cars. I felt panicked and furious. I didn't know what happened, but I did know that she was in trouble. The thought of someone hurting her made me just about lose it.

Then I heard something, but I don't know how I heard it so clearly. It was like my senses were especially attuned to her or something. There was a scuffle behind the building. I looked up just in time to see Bella elbowing some thug with a ponytail in the gut. He bent over from the blow, then lashed out at her, slamming her back against the brick wall. He had her cornered.

I rushed through the alleyway, careful to keep quiet so he wouldn't hear me until I was upon him. I kept low behind the row of cars and eventually was close enough to see and hear them clearly. She had a swollen lip and blood on her face, and I swear to God, I wanted to kill him for doing that to her.

"Well, _Bella Swan_, you look ready for a fight," he taunted her.

"I get that a lot, _James_. I guess it's just my usual expression," she said defiantly.

Typical Bella, provoking her attacker. He reached out and ran a finger over her lip. She winced at the contact and I clenched my fists, blood boiling.

"Quite a mouth you've got on you," he said. "Now maybe you'll use it for some good."

That's when I really lost it.

In a single swift move, I crossed the final distance between us and my fist collided with his smug face in an instant. He crashed to the ground, but I wasn't finished with him yet. I dropped down on top of him and pulled him back up, pounding my fists into him again and again. It all happened so quickly that I think he must have been in shock because it took him a couple of seconds to react. But finally, he started fighting back, and I was glad because there's no fun in winning if the other person doesn't even put up a fight.

He lunged at me swinging, and somehow between hits, it all became a blur. I was driven entirely by instincts, like an animal. He was a good fighter, stronger than most of the guys I'd fought, but I was faster than him and able to deflect most of his blows.

I felt the force of his punch against my cheek and tasted my own blood. I felt the crack of bone beneath my fist as I connected with his jaw. Then I felt the warm stickiness of his blood spreading through my fingers. I felt the soft flesh of his gut smash against my fist, and then against my foot. I don't know how long this went on, because it was like I was in a fog.

But then something drew me out of the haze. Bella. I don't know how long she'd been calling my name, but I felt her hand touch my shoulder and I was suddenly aware.

"Edward, stop," she said softly. "If you don't stop, you're going to kill him."

I realized he was no longer struggling. I looked down at the bloody, unconscious face beneath my hands and wondered if she was right, and if she was right, maybe that was what I wanted. It was as though she could tell what I was thinking, because then she spoke again, and her tone was still soft, but firm.

"That's not what you want, Edward," she said. "Trust me."

And I did.

**Bella POV**

As Edward slowly stood up, I thought it was too late. I looked at the limp body of James Fitzpatrick, laying there in the alley, bleeding, and I thought he might already be dead. Whether he was dead or alive, I knew we needed to get out of there – fast.

The Fitzpatrick's were no joke, and I shouldn't have gone there. When Charlie is always telling me to stay away from dangerous things, _this_ is what he is talking about. I turned to Edward, and just as I opened my mouth to speak, James started coughing. He was alive, coughing up blood and now barely conscious, but alive.

The Fitzpatrick's were a close-knit family of hardened criminals that would do just about anything to keep from being sent back to prison. I didn't know what their current seedy business or shady dealings entailed, but evidently, when James saw me snooping around their properties, he thought I did. Being the daughter of the man that sent most of his family to prison didn't exactly help my situation.

I turned to Edward to speak, and saw that his hands were covered in James' blood. Blood covered his shirt and face, and I wondered how much of it was his own. Adrenaline and emotion surged through my veins so intensely that there _were_ no words.

Edward saved me. I don't know how he found me so fast, but he did. He was just – _there_. I had thought I was all alone, and though I didn't know what James would do to me, I knew it would not be good. But then, in my desperate moment, Edward found me. From the instant I saw him, relief flooded over me, and that strange comfort stayed with me as we stood in the alley, frozen in place.

His eyes met mine and there were a thousand emotions there, but I didn't know how to interpret any of them. My thoughts were interrupted when James groaned, wheezing, and I realized I couldn't afford the luxury of contemplation. We needed to get the hell out of there.

"We need to go," I choked out, my throat dry.

"Are you okay?" was all he said, pausing with each syllable, his voice low and eerily calm.

"Yes," I answered quickly. "_Are you_?"

He just nodded as he stared at me intently, like he was looking right through me. His gaze made me feel exposed, vulnerable, but there was something exhilarating about it too – like I never wanted him to take his eyes off of me.

"We should get out of here before one of his brothers finds us here," I said, forcing myself back to the situation at hand. "He'll be fine. Just leave him." I said, motioning towards James. I took a single step before stopping myself. "Shit. He took my keys," I said.

Edward knelt down and checked James' pockets. He retrieved my keys and tossed them to me.

Side by side, we quickly walked back down the alley towards my truck. When we got there, I saw the familiar silver Volvo not far away, and for some reason, that sight brought me comfort. I pulled open my door and started to get in, when he stopped me.

"What the hell just happened?" he asked, shaking his head as if trying to wake from a dream.

I looked away, not wanting to explain that it was my reckless behavior that had just put us both in danger.

"I don't know. He saw me looking around here, and I guess he assumed I knew something, or was afraid I did, or-"

"Let me look at that," he said, touching my chin and tilting my face towards him. He delicately ran a finger underneath my lower lip. His touch was so gentle and maybe it was because his skin felt cold or maybe it was because I was in shock, but it made me tremble.

My head felt light as I looked into his eyes and I think that's when I finally really _saw_ him for the first time. His eyes seemed darker, full of anger. But there was more. Behind the rage there was depth, concern, compassion, _for me_. I was suddenly aware of every minute detail of his face – the way his brow was tensed, his jaw locked. I noticed the way his mouth changed when he looked at me – lips parted ever so slightly, the corner raised so subtly that probably no one else in the world would have noticed.

His free hand brushed my hair from my face and I realized he was studying me as carefully as I was studying him.

"I feel very _protective_ of you," he breathed.

I was unable to keep my eyes from returning to his. He was beaten and broken, smears of blood marring his face, but he'd somehow never looked better to me.

"What were you doing here?" he demanded.

"Let's talk about this later," I said, suddenly finding it hard to breath.

"You gotta give me some answers," he said sharply.

"Not now," I said, tearing myself away from him and climbing into the truck, hoping my head would stop spinning.

When I looked back, he had turned and started walking away from me. I didn't expect him to give up so easily.

What the hell was I doing? I was pushing away the person that just saved me, the person that was there for me, the one I was drawn to, the one I now realized - I wanted.

And maybe it was the adrenaline, or maybe it was the shock, but impulsively, I reacted. I hopped down from the truck and crossed the distance between us, grabbing hold of his arm. I spun him around and before I had a chance to contemplate my actions, I raised up on my toes and pulled his face down to mine. As my lips found his, fire and heat shot through my body. Like an animal, I was driven entirely by instincts. My mind held no room for thoughts, just impulse and desire, and right now, Edward Cullen was what I desired. His lips were warm and soft, and a thousand other clichés, but it was good. It was very good.

The voice of reason suddenly took over, and I broke the embrace, pulling myself away. I was momentarily humiliated. Had I just thrown myself at Edward? What if he didn't want me? I timidly looked up at him as I lowered myself back down. He looked shocked, and something else that I couldn't quite place. Bemused?

I turned back to my truck and took exactly one step away from him when I felt his hand on my wrist, spinning me back towards him and pulling me into his arms. Again, our lips met and this time his embrace held me close. Tinges of pain mixed with pleasure as my busted lip pressed against his, but I didn't dare pull away. Nothing had ever been this good. A part of me wondered if this was wrong, but how could something that felt this right ever be wrong? All traces of blood and violence and confusion around us faded away as we intertwined. I ran my fingers through his hair as his lips, warmer and softer than any I'd ever met, pressed against mine, and it all became a blur.

Night had fallen all around us, but time seemed to stand still as we connected, both broken, both bloody, but _together_. It had taken a thousand unlikely factors to get us both there, in that moment. But that's the thing, sometimes the most important moments of your life happen when you least expect them.


	9. Strangers in the Rain

**A/N: So, I'm sorry I took entirely too long to update. I have no good excuse other than that I sometimes fail at life. I'm not sure if anyone is still reading this... *taps microphone* is this thing on? ... I want to thank Kim for her continued patience with me, and the EBs for all the support and inspiration IFLY. **

**Again, apologies for the delay.**

**Bella POV**

The rain beat down, drenching my body as I hurried from my truck to the apartment door. Each stomp of my foot splashed water onto me from the puddle filled pavement. I was soaked, and ordinarily, I would have been annoyed, but this time I didn't even care.

I reached the door, and looked back for the first time. After I gave a quick reassuring nod, I watched the lights of Edward's Volvo fade into the distance. As I unlocked the door, and prepared to enter my home, I should have been thinking about Charlie – what I would say to him, how I would explain my bruises. I should have been wondering where we stood after our argument, that although only this morning, now seemed so long ago. But I found myself unable to focus, all thoughts and impulses pulling me back to the alley, back to Edward.

After being interrupted in typical Forks style with this downpour, I insisted I needed to get home. The rain had held off for too many days, and when it finally arrived, it was like the floodgates had opened. He wanted to drive me, but I had enough awareness to know that Edward Cullen walking me to my door would be enough to send Charlie completely over the edge. I refused the offer, but he was undeterred, and drove behind me instead to ensure my safe arrival. I protested, and was embarrassed by the gesture, but I sort of liked that he did it.

I quietly pushed open the door, and as I took the first step into the apartment, I heard Charlie. He was in the kitchen, and had no doubt been pacing the floor, peering out the window for my arrival. That meant he must have seen Edward. Great. As if things weren't complicated enough. I drew in a deep breath and took the next step, wondering if I had any chance of making it to my room before he made his move.

We needed to talk. I knew that. But right now I needed to be alone and to sort through my thoughts and wash away the debris of the day. My clothes were stained with dried blood, and I smelled of Edward. That was not the best way for me to face Charlie. The last thing I needed was for him to find out about my '7 Minutes in Heaven' with Edward.

I took my next step, sighing in defeat as the floorboard creaked. I instantly felt Charlie's eyes on me, hovering from the kitchen doorway. I turned and my eyes met his and he opened his mouth to speak, but as my disheveled appearance registered, his face instantly changed to one of concern. Crossing the distance between us quickly, one hand braced my shoulder as the other tilted my head up.

"Bella, my God, what happened?" His words breathed out in a rush. "Are you okay? Come on in here. Sit down. Who did this to you? What happened?" His words continued in rapid-fire succession, his voice panicked and worry filled, his eyes darting back and forth over me.

"Ch-Dad, calm down. I'm okay," I said in the most reassuring voice I could manage. The truth was, my head was spinning and I felt like I could pass out at any moment. But in all honesty, that was more likely a result of making out with Edward in the alley than from anything Leah or James had done to me.

"Let's get some ice on that," he said motioning towards my lip as he led me to sit down on the sofa. "Where else are you hurt? Are you still bleeding?"

"No – I – yes, ice sounds good," I stammered. "But it's – it's not my blood – mostly not, anyway."

His eyes narrowed as he examined me. He'd still remained calmer than I had expected. He seemed to be hesitating, choosing his words perhaps, contemplative. He went to the kitchen to retrieve an ice pack from the freezer and when he returned, gently pressed it to the side of my face, still saying nothing. I winced at the cold, but knew it would help. He went to the linen closet and brought a towel to wrap around me.

A moment passed as he stared at me. He finally spoke, and when he did, his voice was infused with anger.

"Did that Cullen bastard do this to you?" he spat out.

"No!" I answered quickly. "Why would you even –" And then I remembered he would have been watching out the window and seen Edward's car.

"What's going on with you two?" he asked. "I don't like it."

"Actually, it would have been a lot worse if Edward hadn't been there," I admitted.

His skeptical eyes appraised me, but evidently he believed me, and his face softened. He sat down in the chair across from me and leaned forward, taking my free hand in his.

"I'm so sorry about this morning, Bella. I'm tired of these secrets and lies between us, and I – I shouldn't have reacted like I did. And I certainly shouldn't have left things like that." He shook his head, seeming disgusted with himself. "The way I've acted, I can't blame you. I've driven you right to that dreadful family-"

"It's not like that," I interjected.

"I am sorry Bella, about before. I really am," he said, shaking off my correction. "But right now I want you to tell me what the hell happened to you, and where you've been."

"It's a long story," I said.

"I've got time," he insisted, not dissuaded. "And I'm telling you right now, I don't care what you say – if that little Cullen shit had anything to do with what happened to you, so help me –"

"Got it," I chimed in quickly, before he had a chance to go further down that road. "But really, if Edward hadn't found me when he did…" My voice trailed off, my mind wandering back to the alley. My body reacted to the very thought of him, his arms, his lips… I struggled to regain my focus, pulling my mind back to the present.

There was nothing left to do but start talking. So I did. Like Charlie, I was tired of the lies. When I started telling him the truth, it too, was like opening the floodgates. There was so much to catch him up on, and it all started gushing out.

I began by telling him about James, but then I realized I had to go back before that. I tried to start at the beginning, but I wasn't ready to talk about Edward or running into him outside of the office, so I started with going to La Push to visit Jacob. I didn't get into the specifics of the discussion, still not eager to jump back into the Cullen conversation, but explained that afterwards I decided to go see Seth since I was so close. I was honest about everything, simply leaving the Cullens out of the conversation whenever I could. I knew this would not always be possible, but it was one topic I needed to better understand myself before trying to explain it to Charlie.

He listened intently as I described going through Harry's belongings, his brow furrowed when I got to the part about the phone records. When I explained that my busted lip was a gift from Leah, his eyes widened, but he didn't interrupt.

It was only after I explained how I ended up in the alley with James that Charlie finally interrupted.

"Bella, I have told you a thousand times not to go nosing around places like that," he said. He tried to sound scolding, but his voice was still laced with concern.

"I know-"

"You should have called me, Bells," he said. "Those people are dangerous. Didn't you remember any of the self-defense I taught you?"

"I was getting to that," I said. "But he had me pinned in - and I'm still not positive how, but Edward found me - and so fast…" My voice trailed off again as my mind flashed back over it. The absolute terror that had finally begun to fill me, the flood of relief at the sight of Edward's face, the sick exhilaration I felt at seeing him beat James.

It was easy to blame it on the adrenaline, and it was definitely a factor. But had the adrenaline clouded my judgment, or had it finally allowed me to see things clearly for the first time? I wanted to see him again, to see if it would be the same, if that same electric spark would continue to exist between us. How could it not? But what if it didn't? What if he was only responding to my actions and reacting in the heat of the moment? I had to see him. I had to know. But I was terrified of what the answer might be.

I was suddenly very emotional, and it must have shown on my face because in an uncharacteristic show of affection, Charlie moved next to me on the sofa and pulled me into an embrace. He locked his arms around me, and I tensed, waiting for him to release me.

"Bells, it's gonna be okay," he whispered. "I know it must have been scary." He was reassuring me, misinterpreting the reason behind my emotions. "I don't know what I'd do if anything ever happened to you. I can't lose you. I won't. Not you too, Bella."

I looked up at him and saw his usual hardened and unreadable face was now overwrought with emotion. He had loosened his grasp, but I was still leaning against him. I didn't want to lose him either. I wasn't sure when we had crossed the threshold and become adversaries, but I missed the closeness we used to share. Somehow, amidst all the betrayal and deception, we'd turned on each other.

It was time to put all the cards on the table.

"I don't want things to be like they have been between us anymore," I said. "I'm still investigating Tanya's murder, you know that. And I know you are, too."

"I was," he admitted. "I got caught up in it again. I got wrapped up in trying to unravel it all. But I had to stop."

"Why?" I demanded, straightening up. "We're running out of time. Harry is scheduled to die, and whoever killed Tanya is still out there."

"I used to think that solving the case was the key to our happiness," he said. "Solve the case and my reputation is restored. Solve the case and your mom comes home. Solve the case and your life can go back to normal."

"So let's do it," I said. "Let's solve the case-"

"Wait, Bella," he said. "What I believe now is that we have to make the most out of what we have. All of that is in the past. It's time to focus on the here and now."

"What about the truth?" I asked. "What about the Clearwaters? And Tanya?"

"Bella-"

"You can't just drop this," I said, my voice sounding more like a plea than I intended.

"It's over," he said. "It's time to let it go."

"You don't believe that," I said.

"I hate to break it to you, honey, but nobody in Forks cares what I believe. They didn't care when I was Sheriff, and they sure as hell don't care now. This town's gonna have to find another conspiracy nut."

He was really giving up. I'd stood by him through all of this, and he was ready to throw in the towel.

"It's not over," I said quietly. He might be finished, but I'm not.

"There's no guarantee we'll ever find out what really happened," he said.

"We can try," I said.

"It'll just make things harder on you, around town," he said.

"We _have_ to try," I said.

We locked eyes for a moment before he spoke again.

"You're more like me than I realized," he said with a sigh, running his hand over his chin. "You're not going to let this go, are you?" he asked rhetorically.

He looked down, and his eyes stopped on my left forearm. I looked down to see that a bruise had formed on my wrist, courtesy of James. He stared at it for a few seconds before continuing.

"You're not gonna stop putting yourself in harm's way until you get the answers you're after. I see that now." He swallowed hard, having difficulty with his words. "The things I've kept from you, I've done it to try to protect you. But I'll be damned if it's not had the opposite effect," he said. "I'm through keeping secrets for other people and having them come between me and the people I love."

What did he mean, 'keeping secrets for other people'?

"I know where your mother's at," he said, his voice too casual for my taste.

I pulled away from him, sitting straight up.

Had he known all this time and not told me? I was incensed.

"Where is she? How did you –"

"She left because she thought she was protecting you," he continued, undistracted by my questions.

"Protecting me? From what?" I asked.

He went quiet again and chewed at his lip. _Spit it out already, Charlie._

"There's some history between our family and the Cullens that you don't know about," he said, shaking his head. "It's ugly, and it doesn't have any relevance to our lives now."

"If it's the reason mom left, then it most definitely _does_ have relevance now," I said. "Did they do something to run her off?"

"No one made her leave, Bella," he said. "It was more of a preemptive measure-"

"What was she preempting?" I demanded. "What's the history with the Cullens?"

Saying the name brought Edward back to the forefront of my mind, and I wondered if he knew about this 'history' between our families.

"There's no easy way to say this," he started. "It has to do with the reason Esme Cullen came to see me."

So it wasn't just about some case.

He stopped talking and seemed to be choosing his words. The momentary pause was excruciating, I wanted to shake the answers out of him.

"Your mother's lived in this town a lot longer than I have. I moved here after high school. But your mother, she grew up here," he said.

I swear to God, if he starts this story at childhood, I'm going to cry. _Just get to the point already, Charlie. I'm dying here._

"Carlisle's always had a way with the ladies. You know that, I'm sure," he said with a humorless laugh. "Even back when he was a washed up has-been, he could charm even the most beautiful girl in town."

Charlie was right; Carlisle was a notorious charmer. I never understood it. If you ask me, the guy reeked of eau de douche, but apparently some ladies must go for that sort of thing.

"Well, your mother always was the most beautiful girl in town," he said.

_Wait, what? _

"Even a twit like Carlisle could see that," he said. "He wanted her, and of course, whatever Carlisle wants, Carlisle gets."

"_Mom and Carlisle_?" I asked in disbelief.

Charlie nodded.

"Gross," I added, suddenly feeling nauseous.

"Yeah, well, it was a long time ago," he said.

"So, what, Esme's jealous of Carlisle's high school sweetheart?" I asked, confused.

Charlie's face looked conflicted. He shifted in his seat before he continued.

"This town is full of secrets. Everyone around here seems to want to sweep things under the rug and pretend they never happened. I've kept secrets for a long time because I thought it was the right thing to do. I kept quiet because it was what your mother wanted. After awhile I just did it because I'd been keeping quiet for so long and I convinced myself that the truth didn't matter anymore."

"What truth?" I asked skeptically.

"Eventually you become a prisoner to it, like keeping other people's secrets makes you just as guilty as them."

"What truth?" I repeated, louder this time.

"Things were over between your mother and Carlisle before I met her," he said. "At least they should have been."

He stopped again and exhaled loudly.

"Carlisle's always had a nasty temper," he mumbled distantly.

"Did he hurt her?" I whispered, my eyes wandering up to meet his. He nodded once silently, but he didn't have to say anything, his face told me enough.

Carlisle was abusive, dangerous, and Charlie knew that. So many things started to make sense – why there'd always been the tension between our family and the Cullens, why mom never wanted me to have anything to do with them, why Charlie was so adamant I not get close to Alice and Edward.

"She told me how he'd fly off the handle over little things," he mumbled. "He had these rules, everything had to be done just so and – " he stopped himself. "She was five minutes late for dinner one night, so when she arrived, he slammed her through the glass coffee table. She was cut up something awful, needed stitches."

"Oh my God," I whispered.

"You know, she still had the scars from that when I met her," he said. He was staring down at the carpet and seemed to be a million miles away in thought.

So Charlie had an idea what Carlisle was capable of, but because Renee wanted him to keep quiet, he never said anything about Carlisle's history of violence.

"When I didn't drop the investigation, Esme started dropping by to see Renee at work," Charlie said.

"She threatened her?" I asked, furious.

"Not exactly," he said. "She had pictures of you, to show she knew your schedule, like they could get to you. There was never a threat made, but the implication was clear. They wanted me to drop the case, and they knew what mattered to us."

"So that's what you meant when you said she left to protect me," I said.

He nodded.

All this time, I've been thinking Mom bolted because she couldn't handle losing everything. Maybe she just couldn't handle losing me.

"But how does her being gone change anything?" I asked. "She should come back."

Charlie shook his head.

"Carlisle's always had pull over her, and I guess she thought that if she took herself out of the scenario by leaving town, that maybe it'd be one less way he could manipulate our family," he said. "So, she went to Jacksonville."

"What's in Jacksonville?" I asked.

"She's staying with Phil, an old college friend," he replied.

"For how long?"

"I don't know," he answered with a shrug.

"But why now? I mean, why were you meeting with Esme so recently?" I asked.

He looked down, shaking his head.

"She really is a desperate woman," he said. "She knew I'd been working the case again, so she came at me from a different angle this time. She'll lie and say anything. She tried to feed me some story about your mother taking up with Carlisle again. But it's nothing but lies. Don't ever believe a word that woman says. Now listen, I don't want you to worry. I'm going to keep you safe."

I was less concerned with my own safety though, as I suddenly thought of Edward and Alice. I remembered how adamant they'd been about not letting Carlisle find out what happened at Emmett's party. What at first seemed like a typical teenage cover-up now took on a much darker meaning.

Even though I doubted they knew about his history with Renee, they must know about his temper at the very least.

Charlie pulled me into another hug as he repeated his promise to keep me safe. It was a sweet gesture, but my own safety was the least of my concerns.

My mind had moved on to thoughts of retribution. Carlisle Cullen really was the evil bastard I thought he was, and he was going to pay.

We spent the rest of the night talking. I don't even remember falling asleep, but I woke up tucked into my bed. It reminded me of when I was a kid and would fall asleep on the couch watching television and Charlie would carry me to bed, never waking me.

I sat up in bed and immediately noticed the distinct smell of something burning. My feet had no sooner hit the ground when the smoke detector went off. I rushed to the kitchen and found Charlie opening a window and futilely attempting to fan out smoke.

There was a large, round, blackened lump lying on the counter that must have been a waffle at one time.

"What are you doing?" I asked, opening another window.

"Sorry, Bells," he said, embarrassed, "I thought I'd surprise you by making breakfast."

"Oh, I'm surprised alright," I said. The smoke detector finally stopped beeping, and only then did I notice the barking.

Charlie looked disappointed.

"Well, I was hoping for this to be a surprise, too," he said.

He walked to the living room as I watched curiously. When he emerged, he was holding what was quite honestly the most adorable puppy I'd ever seen.

"Who is this?" I asked, reaching for the little guy.

He licked my face, making me giggle like a little girl.

"Well, I figured since you're going to keep working cases, you ought to at least have some back up," he said.

"This little guy?" I asked skeptically.

"He's little now, but he's a pitbull. He's going to get a lot bigger," he said. "So…you like him? You gonna give him a name?"

"Are you kidding? You already did," I said, holding him up to my face. "Hi Back Up."

**Edward POV**

I stumbled down the steps Sunday afternoon feeling like I had a hangover. My head throbbed with each drop of my foot on the stairs.

I had hoped a solid night's sleep and a shower would clear my head. No such luck.

She was still on my mind, and in a way that I couldn't wash away. I'm not that guy – the one that gets all hung up on a girl and starts sweating her. That's not me. Except, this time, it kinda is like that.

I don't know what the fuck happened, and I sure as hell don't know what any of it means. But what I do know is that she kissed me, and then it was like she was embarrassed or something, and that was the cutest shit I'd seen in a while. Despite her best efforts to show no vulnerabilities, Bella Swan actually blushed. Things finally got really good between us, and I curse this damn weather for ruining the moment. It gave her the perfect excuse to run away.

After I watched her go in the apartment, I drove around some more on my own. I'm not one to over think things, but I needed to figure out what I was doing. I liked her. That much was obvious. But it was more complicated than that. Normally, I pride myself on being a schmuck, but she was the kind of girl that deserved better than that. I had some decisions to make, but first, I had to get some aspirin.

Rounding the corner at the base of the stairs, I spotted Jasper's car in our driveway. He's a great guy and all, probably the closest friend I've got in this sad little town, but I was really not in the mood to socialize. I headed to the kitchen to grab some coffee and my coveted aspirin before seeking out Jasper and getting rid of him. Then I heard Alice's giggle and Jasper's low chuckle.

I stopped and leaned in the doorway for a moment as I saw them sitting at the kitchen table. They were at what looked to be the end of a game of Jenga. There weren't many pieces left, and the ones that remained were precariously balanced. Alice hesitantly reached in and then jerked her hand back, giggling again. She shook her hands out, as though trying to wave off some of her bouncy energy.

_Yeah, good luck with that, sis. _

"I just, I can't. I'm too jumpy," she giggled out.

"Sure you can. Here," Jasper reassured her. He reached out, taking her hand in his. Carefully guiding her fingers, he helped her extract the game piece. She let out a pleased gasp and looked up at him excitedly.

He smiled back at her and his eyes changed.

That's when I finally got it. I recognized the look on his face. Jasper had a thing for my little sister. Well fuck me dead, how long had that been going on?

"Well isn't that fucking cute?" I finally said.

They both jumped, startled, and the remaining game pieces scattered across the tabletop.

"Hello, Edward," Jasper said formally as he stood up.

"Hey Edward," Alice said, trying to sound casual. "I didn't hear you come downstairs."

They were acting as embarrassed as if I'd walked in on them making out or something. It was actually pretty funny, but I was annoyed. My first reaction was to be pissed. He was the guy I trusted to keep an eye on Alice, and here he was moving in on her.

But, I couldn't stay mad. One look at the poor bastard's face and I knew exactly how he felt. He looked at her the way I looked at Bella. How could I hold that against him?

"Didn't realize I needed to knock before entering the kitchen these days," I said as I walked towards the coffee pot. I laughed as they fumbled around awkwardly packing up the game.

Alice looked up at me when I laughed, surprised, but when I got a few paces closer, her expression changed. I realized I probably still looked like shit.

"What the hell happened to you?" she asked.

I turned away from her and pulled a mug from the cabinet.

"Eh, you know, just a typical Saturday night," I said with forced nonchalance, as I poured my coffee.

"You know, for someone that gets in a lot of fights, you don't seem to be very good at it," Jasper observed.

I shrugged it off, taking a sip as I rummaged through the drawers for the aspirin. They stared at me silently as I threw back the pills and swallowed them down.

"What time is it?" I asked. I ran a hand through my hair and shook my head, still trying to wake up.

"3:30," Jasper answered. Neither of them had taken their eyes off of me, and just stared expectantly.

"Shit," I said, not realizing it was so late.

I paused for a moment, contemplating the situation. Seems I wasn't the only one getting comfortable in Forks.

"This is cute," I said, motioning back and forth between them. "Really, it's fucking sweet."

Alice's mouth actually dropped open a little bit, and even Jasper looked tense.

"What is _with_ you?" Alice asked.

"What do you mean?" I laughed.

"You're like, in an uncharacteristically good mood…" she said slowly, still eyeing me skeptically.

"Am I?" I asked. I guess she was expecting me to be more of my usual asshole self, and normally, I would have been, but I had other things on my mind.

"Seriously, Edward, what happened?" she asked, changing the subject. "It looks like you might need stitches over your eye there."

"It's a long story, and I'm not sure I could explain it all even if I wanted to," I said.

"At least tell me the other guy looks worse than you," she said. "Who _was_ the other guy?"

"Uh, I don't even remember, actually," I admitted. "Bella told me his name, but-"

"Bella?" Jasper interrupted.

"Yeah," I said coldly. I didn't like his sudden interest at the mention of her name. "You know Bella. Never a dull moment, huh?"

Jasper and I stared at each other for a moment, neither speaking. Alice's eyes darted back and forth between us.

"Well, there's the brother I know. Stop being a dick, Edward," she finally snapped. "Is Bella okay?"

"She's fine," I replied. "It's just…complicated." And that was the understatement of the year.

I turned and started walking out of the room.

"Edward, wait," Jasper said.

I stopped.

"I – we – didn't want it to be like this," he said. "We wanted to talk to you, so it wouldn't be weird –"

"It's not. But _this_," I said motioning between us to refer to the current exchange, "_is_ weird. You don't have to ask my permission."

"We know that, but we want you to be okay with it," Alice explained.

I turned from her to Jasper.

"Tell you what, I'm fine with it. Just know this - you break her heart, and _you'll_ be the one looking like this," I said, motioning to my busted face and bruised hands.

He let out a low laugh and smiled.

"I'm not joking," I said, completely serious.

The smile left his face and he nodded, matching my seriousness. Alice looked humiliated, but stayed quiet.

"Got it," he agreed.

I walked away, and this time I made it to the steps before Jasper stopped me. Alice was still in the kitchen.

"Edward," he said, placing his hand on my arm to stop me. His usual confidence had returned to his voice. His grasp remained firm as I looked up at his face. Our eyes met, and for a mellow guy, he looked really fucking intense all of a sudden. "Bella's been through a lot - and I do mean _a lot_ of shit."

"Yeah," I said. "I know."

"I like you Edward," he said flatly. "I know you're not really the asshole you let most people believe you are."

I shrugged indifferently.

"Bella's a good person," he continued.

I realized where he was heading with this and pulled my arm back, but he had a tight grip and didn't let go.

"Don't mess with her just to –" he started.

"I won't," I assured him. "I'm not – It's not like that."

So Jasper Hale really was a standup guy.

I had no intention of screwing her over, using her or whatever else he was implying. I knew I'd have to go against my natural asshole instincts to not mess it up, and I wanted to try it, for Bella. He released my arm, and there was nothing more to say about it.

I continued up the stairs to get started on my homework for the next day. I'm not sure when it first happened, but somewhere along the way, things had started to change. With the way these new developments kept coming in rapid-fire succession, I wanted to be ready for whatever was next. Monday would be a big day, and I had a lot to do to prepare.


End file.
